Evolution from Investment to Gambling

by

Once upon a time, “Value Investing” meant something.  Back in a time when companies had “positive book values.”  In other words, when the plant, equipment, and other valuables were sold (like patents and branding) there would be something left over.  This positive number was then compared with the most recent market price to establish a standard accounting ratio:  Book to Market ratio.

From this eminently rational use of accounting principles, great investors (Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett are two well-known examples) arose.

But times have changed as exemplified by people like Elon Musk.  Whose investments, it could be argued from a classical standpoint, are more speculations than precision valuation exercises.

Because, as we have explained here many times, the “rational market” packed up and left…in stages.

Today, because a subscriber asked me to elucidate on how Ure plays the market (poorly) I’m forced not to begin with great insights into fundamentals.  Rather, we liken market plays to a back-alley craps game.

Which we’ll explore a bit after a few headlines and charts.

More for Subscribers ||| Missing out?  SUBSCRIBE NOW!!! ||| Subscriber Help Center

86 thoughts on “Evolution from Investment to Gambling”

  1. When oil was 25 a barrel and gas mileage was 15 per gallon transporation costs allowed return on investment. At costs above 25 a barrel the only way to do secondary extraction is to print funds…inflation over time to get the oil to do the transport…since 1970 inflation has kept oil flowing. When oil is a real issue (shale, deep water, heavy, Saudi Gehwar) inflation goes up for more extraction.

    • Our current inflation has nothing to do with oil, and everything to do with Mr. Biden nearly tripling the money supply, 4 months after he took office.

  3. These people get free, made-up money and we should too.

    Former Sears staff is still on the PBGC dole.

    Amtrak staff got retroactive raises:

    “The agreement includes a 24% wage increase over a five-year period from 2020 to 2024.”

    – 9/22

    “A portion of the wage increases and lump sum payments are retroactive, resulting in more than $11,000 on average in immediate payouts to employees.”

    – 12/22

    Southwest got 13.1% raises and we saw how they run a business over the last two weeks.

    “Southwest Airlines (LUV. N) customer service employees overwhelmingly ratified a new five-year collective bargaining agreement that includes an immediate 13.1% wage increase, the IAM union said on Thursday.”

    – 12/22.

    We need stimmies!

    – now

    • Have I told this wonderful group of wonderfuls how wonderful they are?

      All ya’ll commentators…are THE BEST.

      All ya’ll!!!

      I learn so much every single day.

      Okay, Georgie, I learn from you, too!

  4. Don’t know if you’re brave enough to do your own taxes but your annual trading history that you include in your returns must look like an encyclopedia. If you have a CPA, though, he’s earning his dough for sure.

    • Actually, the numbers all download off most of the major trading firms into turbotax – which does the tax cacls and the wash sales and all that.
      Since I don’t put money in – or take it out – on the trading account but once at year end, they can’t charge me tax on money I didn’t make. really pretty simple. If year end money came out, it was taxable. If not, there’s a tax loss or carry forward in TT

      • Sounds pretty good – and I wouldn’t expect anything less from “The G-man”. Wish I had the time to monitor the trades but, being out and about usually I’m not about to put any of it on my phone and the frequent outages of the ‘net around here makes me less trusting to have it available when I need it. I’m more of a buy-and-hold kind of guy anyway so my year end statement is boring as heck to any IRS person out there.

        To top it all off the local Internet provider has sold out to one of the big boys so my e-mail that I’ve had since the mid-90s is going to be changing in the near future and I’ve got a page and a half of accounts in fine print and other businesses I’ll have to notify when it happens – including you so be advised it’s coming unless the ‘net drops like you talked about in your book a few years ago.

      • @Bill

        “To top it all off the local Internet provider has sold out to one of the big boys so my e-mail that I’ve had since the mid-90s is going to be changing in the near future”

        Not necessarily.

        My principal E-Mail account is to a company which hasn’t existed in nearly 20 years. It got swallowed by a company in Cleveland, which got acquired by one in Texas, then Indianapolis or Chicago (can’t remember which), then Cali, and last year, Texas again. Every single company has maintained a sliver of my original ISP — enough to run the mail servers, the result being my addy itself hasn’t changed since 1992.

      • Hi Ray. I certainly hope so. No real details have been forthcoming so far. We thought it was going to happen this month and the last tech person I talked with said it wouldn’t happen until early Summer. Verizon is who is acquiring the local ISP so we’ll see how the transition goes.

    • Not me… I hire it done by a cpa.. the reason.. I don’t have the funds to make a point or pay the penalties if I make a mistake.. the IRS loves the poor boys.. they know they can’t debate the issues.. and will eat them alive.. the reason there is fifty thousand tax code pages is for the wealthy to avoid paying taxes.. I know businessmen whose companies own everything they have.. the cars the homes the campers.. even pays for their fuel.. they show zero or near zero income so they can get a return.. company men.. I am pretty sure that is whey djt didn’t want his tax returns published.. he was a company man.. shows a lower income enough to even qualify for food stamps and heating assistance..
      the same reason why so many hide their funds in offshore accounts and move the companies business to other countries.. its all in the business model..

      • I am a small business man and I follow tax code just like DJT.
        Everyone should follow the tax code.

      • “I am a small business man and I follow tax code just like DJT.
        Everyone should follow the tax code.”

        EXACTLY @Zephyr…..LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL
        My old boss lives in a multi million dollar mansion.. LOL LOL it is redecorated every year.. and photographed.. ( seen the old cabinet advertisements.. the den.. living room etc.. advertising.. a company home..the same with his Million dollar camper LOL oh and that cost of that camper was from eighty five ) hit cars trucks etc.. all advertising props..
        all owned by the company… his pay.. goes into a tax free account that is in the companies name.. he just draws out what he needs.. so like DJT.. he pays no taxes on it.. keeps his income below ten grand a year.. he can get a huge refund.. just like DJT..
        I have said for year.. you want it equal.. then no deductions.. and pay ten percent of what you earn above poverty.. that way even the companies wouldn’t have a write off.. if you moved your company headquarters like one did to the cayman islands.. they still pay.. make a buck here pay a tax on it.. simple easy.. less than one page of tax codes.. and it is no longer a benefit to the business owner to claim nothing..
        a woman I worked with three kids.. her husband made three million a year.. but because of the tax code and how the company doled out the money like that to him.. he showed less income than she made working as a nurses aid and when they got a divorce .. he didn’t have to pay.. instead he could have gone after her for financial support..
        its the same tax codes that allow for people to dump money into congress’s pockets pay for trips hire women and children for them to have sex with.. or give their family members lucrative jobs.. its a tax write off..
        I could put a few dozen academic studies done on legalized corruption in govt.. but that doesn’t make any different..
        Its the same reason why DJT doesn’t want his taxs released either.. most people wouldn’t associate it with the higher paid employee’s getting those kind of perks.. and I am sure there is a code among those at the top to keep the hourly wage slaves from knowing this.. it is what it is.. would I like to see a flat tax .. absolutely.. and that is why hundreds of millions is spent to stop it from happening..
        Its why Jimmy was tossed under the bus by congress that caused the double digit inflation of the seventies.. and a tax reform that was coined the millionaire tax relief bill of 1978 Jimmy took it like a distinguished man of honor that he is…. I can’t even remember what that one was really called at the time.. it tossed the middle class under the wheels of govt and gave money back to the wealthy LOL LOL then taking the money that was set aside in the eighties for social security set us on the road we are on today.. the big issue.. no one trickled down money and those at the bottom like myself.. doesn’t have it to pay the piper.. so.. there is only one way this can end right now.. all those bank accounts all those numbers hidden away like some squirrel hiding his nuts.. ( My nuts like most wage earner men and Andies are viewable to all women accountants that want to take a look.. LOL LOL ) and just like the hidden nuts of the squirrel.. they won’t be edible when the squirrel goes to get them.. similar to the cartoon coin everyone loves.. its JUST A NUMBER.. paper can be wiped with.. use it while its still good to use though.. when it isn’t then we have Argentina and zimbabwe or the weimar depression..
        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperinflation_in_the_Weimar_Republic

  5. .gov ID to access porn is a segue into the Internet ID concept previously discussed on this website. Good work! “Save the kids”. All the while the kids are being sexualized in a different branch of .gov, public schools.

    The buzz is the Omnibus that was passed included

    ” a measure to install vehicle kill switches into every new car, truck, and SUV sold in this country.” to go into effect 2026.

    Say the wrong thing on the Internet *boom* in the penalty box. Headed to the big protest, *blink* the car won’t move.
    Smart meters are mostly installed on the houses.

    We’re going to look at others as digital avatars and they will look at us as digital avatars.

      • There IS no kill switch on my Jeepster…

        (Also no requirement for a right-side tail light, turn signals, seat belts, etc. It DOES have most of those “options,” AND an EMP-proof tube radio…)

      • My daughter in the early nineties had a car.. that periodically it would register that she was stealing the car and it would just shut down.. and the dealership was giving her a hard time.. so she asked me to take it in.. I had the mechanic take a ride with me.. it died in the busiest intersection .. LOL ..after that they finally fixed the issue..

      • @LOOB

        “most people don’t realize is that most of the newer cars have had a black box in them for years..”

        Yeppers. The gummint made the black box a requirement in 2009. I decided I’d only go shopping for cars made before ’09, then I read up. If your car is American/Canadian market, and has an OBD-II port, it likely has some form of “black box” which has a built-in GPS and, at the least, monitors/records speed and direction. My 2002 Jetta monitors door locks, seat belts, lights & radio, but the 2002 Audi A4, essentially the same car with a badge job, monitors HVAC controls, suspension loading on all four corners, gas door, ABS, seat rake & position, and a bunch of other stuff — and that was in ’02, when the tech was newer and a lot less capable.

        The black box records your every move and loops the recording, saving the last 20 minutes before any detected impact, and on OnStar-equipped, and later model vehicles, broadcasts your GPS location and can accept a “kill” command from a police-only transmitter — even the Ureos and Chinese have access to this feature now, so it may have become ubiquitous.

        The difference between the black box kill switch and this one is the latter is AI-driven, your car decides whether you should be allowed to drive, and the AI is much more amenable to a police suggestion…

      • Defeating ONSTAR kill switch is easy. Wrap that little antenna ‘hump’ on the roof with aluminum foil and tape it in place. Of course you will not have ONSTAR now, but who needs it?

    • Saw that about the kill switch. My newest vehicle is a 2014. I don’t much care for the gadgets it has, but I know the newer ones have a LOT more of it! All the other we have are from the mid 90’s or 80’s. We really wished we could trade off the 80’s truck for something from the late 60’s or early 70’s, but they be hard, hard, hard to find (reasonably priced). I will never give up the Jeep; It’s got too many uses. As for a new vehicle, never again. Idiots buying up the latest greatest crap eventually figure out it ain’t what they’d been told it would be. I also totally agree with how the switch will be abused to control any sort of mass group efforts or singularly to punish the bad dogs, so to speak.

    • This just ups the value of older vehicles. I’ve always loved classics anyway and plan to have all of ours until the wheels fall off. My wife’s car is a 2011 and MAY have some kind of kill switch in it, no On Star, but everything else we have is at least 4 years older than that and there’s 2 old flivvers we hold in reserve at the ranch that are way past their registration dates. One’s the dump truck and the other we use occasionally for rounding up so they never leave the ranch. Fixing the diesel is still cheaper than payments on a newer one (NO way I’m buying anything past the beginning of the Blue DEF era) but parts and labor are definitely catching up – and it’s about to go back into the shop for wheel bearings again. Going to have to break it to the cows that some of them are going to have a new address soon.

      All the stuff that’s supposedly coming down the pike, though, will be interesting to see how its implemented with 150+ million ticked off people from coast to coast. We ain’t Chinamen and even they have ways of skirting the rules if they’re far enough away from the megalomaniacs.

    • Justin Trudeau is rubbing his hands in GLEE over this future government computer control of vehicles!!

      Not only will he be able to TAKE your bank accouts, SHUT DOWN your business, CANCEL any licenses of any sort that you have – including your drivers license (things he has done already), but THEN he will ALSO be able to keep your vehicles, or any you might drive, immobile until you SEE IT HIS WAY!!

      Obviously the US Government, particularly the FBI, is taking note of Justin’s pioneering work at FORCING THOUGHT COMPLIANCE upon those who voice opposition.

      Remember … All are Equal, it is just that Some are MORE Equal than others. The FBI operations manual and the Cuban Government’s manual distilled to it’s simplist form. (if YOU did the stuff that Hunter Biden did do YOU think the FBI would sit on it’s hands for YEARS and do nothing to you?)

  6. Just read that congress gave each member $2 million + for home security in the $1.7trillion omnibus bill. Looks like they are getting ready to really screw us if they need that kind of protection.

    • They give each member $2mln every year, as a “discretionary allowance.” This is how a wanker like Kinsinger can afford a staff, or gym time, or the occasional D.C. meal that some lobbyist does not pay for, for him.

    • $2 million per will Not bee enough..Its for the SCREWING thats already been done to YOU and YOURS.

      -pendulum has swung back towards equilibrium..no worries regards arc of the swing,it alwayz goes past..way past – just like it did during the beginning of french revolution. All their MALFEASANCE is coming to light, as it does moar and moar citizens bee waking up to the horror of it ALL.
      Anger build is just starting to perc…but like every Fire, it will grow and grow burning fuel (pols,WEF’rs and their bot and paid for stooges) . The amount of “fuel” available to burn seems limitless right now.

      “Agni” has been let loose…always ends in his tears. The big 500 lb gorilla over there in the corner…”Agni’s brotha from anotha Mother – Shiva. Not 4 nothing thye call him “The Destroyer” and he dont even knock to announce his arrival.

      • Ahhh….come on, the French Revolution was done by the bolshevick class.

        Name one real revolution that was by the people, for the people.

        If people start burning things it’s because the bolsehvick class wants it. ANTIFA!

        When things start to burn and blow up, it’ll be on purpose, on demand, and on time.

        What color was that revolution?

    • if you take guns away from the citizens the only ones with them will be military and criminal elements.. defunding the police protection and everyone is vulnerable..

      • It’s time for you to graduate from “See Jane Run” type fiction to adult non-fiction articles. You’re waaaaay behind the others here in reading choices and comprehension. (Pelosi’s home attack being caused My MAGAteers is Babylon Bee material.)

  7. police state rolls on… We as adults have to produce ID in lots of situations (should be mandatory to vote, but another discussion). We have agreed as a society, some activities need to have oversight.
    We know the studies that pornography at young ages can disturb the “normal” progression of the brain, especially in boys. I am normally on the libertarian side of equations, but there is clearly value in protecting children from adult activities, even if the parent does not agree (drinking, drug use), when they are to young to consent. I don’t see why we abandon this requirement because it is on the Internet. I have similar beliefs that youth are not able to consent about sex with adults, and cannot consent to have gender transformations. Even if their guardians agree, I believe the children do not understand the ramifications (as their brains are not yet fully developed) and thus are never able to consent. For all those activities one should have to prove they are of age before allowed access to those items.

    Would this stop kids from getting porn, probably not as they can likely go to services in other countries that have less restrictions. But that does not mean we should abandon taking a stand on what is acceptable.

    • Absolutely, it is called morals and values, and we ALL know better.

      The children need us to fight for them and stand up for them.

      They do NOT KNOW.

      WE DO KNOW.

      As you mentioned, the brain is more developed by 26!!!

      26!!!

      That leaves a whole lot of time for gender dysphoria to clear up on its own.

      Did you notice that Brad Pitt and Angelie Jolie (excuse me if I misspelled them) their oldest daughter dressed like a boy until she didn’t!!! At about 16 or 17, now she’s a beautiful GIRL.

      That’s why we should not mess with their hormones or their private parts (including breasts) until they are at least at full emotional brain age!!!

  8. Americans — even the many currently slumbering off the playing field — have a deep societal tradition of Liberty in their souls. The “Law Of The West,” if you like. (The legendary, even if largely imaginary, sense of the Deep Right to personal Liberty.)

    We (Americans) have it, and most (all?) other countries don’t.

    It might be a residual of why the waves of European immigrants came here, plus the spirit born of the Westward expansion into essentially limitless horizons. You gotta be brave to face all those unknowns — and even if one doesn’t even try, SOME of that attitude must get passed down in thousands of small ways in thousands of small transactions: generationally.

    I’m betting that at some point very large numbers of Americans will finally wake up, and take action. I can imagine several paths for this, but FIRST enough people have to awaken and say, “I’m mad as hell, and I’m not gonna take it anymore!” (Thanks Howard Beal)

    • Actually, I believe that the reason action has not yet been taken in a meaningful way is that individuals can’t imagine useful actions, (beyond dropping out of engagement with society). When many of us go Galt, that might message those who think that they’re in charge, or it may not. I don’t condone unnecessary violence, though I can’t speak for others.

  9. Bitcoin
    “We find it astounding the government hasn’t taken action already.”
    – According to one watchdog group, every U.S. Senator [and most of their aides.] have a bitcoin wallet. They are in no-way eager to hamper their hidden assets and under-the-table dealings. [ $1.8 billion in digital coins were stolen in 2022.]
    – Patti Murray
    While under the Trump Administration, all four years, Patti Murray was voted the most corrupt U.S. Senator. I am not surprised at all, that she was voted-in as Senate President.
    – Trading / Gambling
    We use a lot of the same indicators and charting – though I use a bit more math and Fibonacci [ there’s an algorithm for that ! ].., programmed into my T.I. Scientific. I seldom make a straight stock play.., and go for the options if I see/find a ‘good bet’. [ Like Apple, recently – that as nice.] Our often used “lunch money” quip is the same – small percent on every trade and out the door., and try to remain ‘the small guy in the room’., unnoticed.
    I have never shared my “Dirty Dozen Trade Rules”., nor what I use [ charting/indicators ] to make a trade decision [ buy / sell – puts/calls ] or what I am currently watching, or trading. I can think of no faster way to loose friends and make enemies..,

  10. Hey wanna fun lets do it project for the kids on this snowy day…
    take 2 tbsp of corn starch
    1 tsp of glycerin
    1 tbsp of vinegar
    1/2 cup of water
    1/2 cup of sawdust
    2 disposable cups
    spray the inside of one cup with a release agent like cooking spray or wd40 silicone spray etc. and the outside of the other..
    put the cornstarch in the pan and stir in the water then add the glycerin and vinegar.. now start to cook the mixture as it heats up. and starts to jel start adding the sawdust .. then take it off the heat pour it in the cup with the spray inside and move it around until it coats the sides and botto.. now press the second cup inside…let it cool.. you just made a simple injection molded cup..remove it and trim and sand the edges…
    have fun spearamint with the kids.. make toys etc.. its also how hemp is being used to make construction material..

    • why even a simple Pin, a piece of Aluminum Foil and couple packs of Matches makes fun rocketry experiments..lil kids lov that kinda stuff, vinegar& baking soda rockets, oh my!

      way moar fun 4 grandpa Loob – get Ure hands on some Thorium…ya know the scheisse that sickened& killed Moses after he had a lil one on one his “god”, causes crop circles, dead zones under where “ufo’s landed…To the Moon, Loob, to the Moon.

      • hmmm.. that’s interesting .. instead of thorium why not tritium paint and make forever batteries lol lol.. well thousand year batteries..
        like teaching the kids how to make lava and melt stone using the sun..bad mistake really bad kids get excited and want to learn all about it and see more…. anything dangerous is a no no with young kids.. vinegar rockets good..nothing using radium of any kind ever..https://youtu.be/I_1XelLa1eo .. and nothing explosive.. bio plastic … easy and fun and non toxic..even making a pencil I have to do most of the work if we use a power tool..using a lathe.paper..well using pre pulled wood..the processfor making traditional paper from raw resourcesis quite intense and toxic…. with power tools no loose clothing and hair put up for the girls and I am in control at all times safety first. there is a reason why manufacturing has the no rings and no watches rules.. I’ve seen people loose fingers and have their hands pulled into twirling blades.with latex paint each of the kids have their own gas masks and safety goggles.
        a thousand year battery is fun..but not for children..and I don’t have any lead shield tape so that won’t happen anytime soon lol lol..

  11. That’s a great headline george for today’s topic . So appropriate. Anyway gold is the only real valuable asset left and things are progressing smoothly . Will monitor the situation.

    • In a shtf scenario.. who will buy it…
      Probably the gent that opened his trench coat and sold it to you.. LOL LOL come here sonny hey wanna buy some gold..
      its in the business model to sell high buy low..

      • What happens is that you become the bank able to issue small business loans to select clients… for let’s say some of next year’s crop.

        Maybe you can even furnish some of the seeds for a little higher interest rate.

    • Gold is crap. $1,655 ten years ago, $1,855 today, $200 over ten years, 1% a year. Then add in the premiums the dealers charge to buy and sell and you’ve lost money. Today AU is at $1,853 and Kitco is paying $1,860 for an American Eagle and selling them for $2,090.

      • Gold is not an ‘investment’. It is a hedge against the whole financial system collapsing… for future trade.

      • $2,090 – $1,855 = ten years to to back to your tax basis. Are my calcs wrong?

        Hank & Bill – because when the lights go out everyone will be clamoring to trade for gold? I don’t see it. Besides physical gold isn’t very scalable.

      • PM’s can be handed down ten generations and still maintain their value(if not found and stolen). There’s no paper that can survive changes of those in charge for that long, and you can’t hide real(royal) estate.

      • @sunongrass: “Hank & Bill – because when the lights go out everyone will be clamoring to trade for gold? I don’t see it. Besides physical gold isn’t very scalable.”
        If you don’t see it.. you might want to look at what the Russians and Chinese are doing… accumulating gold. Gee, I wonder why?

      • You’re obviously a young guy that missed the boat on the last big dip in the metals and have a trader’s mindset. You can’t do that when you’re simply preserving your purchasing power by squirreling it away. That is how PMs are used unless you’re a coin/PM dealer. I see this all the time on other comments sections. I have NO intentions of selling my PMs now or in the near future.

      • bill – scalable = whacha your gonna trade for with a one oz round? Can you make change? if there is a total collapse like some of you are praying for what are you going to want to trade for? Assuming you find a seller for what you want and assuming the seller will be happy taking PMs rather than something tangible (food, shelter, fuel, supplies) how do you plan to use PMs in a small enough amount that you don’t have to make change. If you’re buying PMs in 1/10 ounce (still a good chunk of money) you’re paying way over spot. Physical AU sucks for transacting trades.

      • “If you’re buying PMs in 1/10 ounce (still a good chunk of money) you’re paying way over spot.”

        Sonny, change will be made in silver, and anyone who’s serious about PMs does, or will own a centigram balance, a streak plate, and a purity kit. Governments and usurers waste time casting assayed gold into bricks, and in stamping coins; actual people deal in convenience, which may be dust, nuggets, or filings…

      • Sonny – you really have not developed your sense of imagination in this area have you? I’ve bought things like my favorite rifle at a gun show with an ounce of gold ‘way back in the 90s when gold was in the $600 range. I made the offer, the guy accepted it and I had to run home and get it because I really wasn’t expecting to do that that day. Still have and love that Model 70 .225 to this day.

        Americans are so far removed from the dickering that World-wide marketplaces live on that most of us have lost the ability to think on that plane. There are more caches of silver change out there than you can shake a stick at, too. That’s your “change”. It’s not going to happen all at once but once people start digging it all out things start to develop organically on their own and that’s the best economy one can participate in. Real money for real things.

        This isn’t to day the government won’t throw a wrench into the works any way they can but it’ll be a bridge we all have to cross at that time. Don’t expect many people to give up their PMs just because some bureaucrat says to, though.

        “Junk silver” change right now is the most expensive way to buy silver but having a small sack full will prime your economic pump enough if you’re buying and selling for yourself. Big chunks of PMs are meant for things like equipment and large lots of supplies that you can, in turn, make money yourself with – the same way a stack of $100 bills buys a car or a few head of livestock on down to chickens. It’s really not that complicated.

  12. “The data supports believing that republicans are just as power-driven and self-centered as democrats.”

    lol lol you know that’s true.. even in religions.. take my church denomination… the assumption that most have is..if you have an essential job that requires you to not be able to attend..that you have little or no faith in god..
    that if bad times hit you and your outside the church ..it was because of their personal choices.. and those in the congregation have a higher set of standards..
    which isn’t true.. salt lake city is referred to as the mecca..for human trafficking and every other decadent lifestyle corruptions.. there are good and bad everywhere.. the same evil lurks in all denominations..
    man political or religious will switch his path to obtain his desires.. the devil lulls one into picking his path.. and make the decisions to follow an alternate path. Christ was born in a time where he should have been killed at birth. lived a life as a nomad.. teaching a simple message love one another and love god.. because he helped somebody on the Sabbath and preached that simple message he was crucified..
    the simple message do unto others..love one another..

    • “The data supports believing that republicans are just as power-driven and self-centered as democrats.”

      Not even close. “Republicans” covet elected office. “Democrats” covet power. This is a plain truth, and is also plainly-obvious when one views the two parties when they are OUT of power…

  13. “My consigliere and I agree this makes a soft coup to oust Putin by the head of PMC Wagner more likely in Russia. Which would lead to a cooling off period (and possible stock rally in Q1?) before the Wagnerians come back armed with nukes and take on NATO in Q2.”

    what’s funny is NATO is pushing to out putin..but if Putin wasn’t the one in charge.there would be a greater fear of nuclear than with Putin as the leader holding back the confrontation from going nuclear..

    • NATO’s biggest flaws are:
      a) Nuland
      b) deadbeat Euros who didn’t pay their share
      c) Complete lack of strategic sense
      d) Maniacal focus on tactical moves for ego satisfaction.

      Yep. Outing Putin is a 75-25 chance of hardliners. Betting the world wasn’t something I’d turn ’em loose with.

  14. “The on-ground Reality is 8-billion people are tearing through Resources at a remarkable rate and – screwing ourselves into the side of the global Petri dish – we will run out of resources until we get population back in balance with geographical realities and planetary banked resources. Like ancient stored fossil energy and highly productive (once upon a time…) soils.”

    lol lol lol lol…what a prime opportunity for me to insert my decades old rant…lol lol lol
    greens cape the cities, promote solar power to home owners and build solar towers starting from the furthest point from the main power plants.. put co2 filters on every city lamp post.. be the tree.. every leaf generates a small amount of so
    electrical energy.. the towers are the branches..
    we are devouring an average of 55 acres a minute and converting it to concrete jungles..instead of war we should be cleaning up the disgraceful destruction of our planet..the huge island of plastic waste..converting it back into oils..helping those that are starving and dying from hunger and thirst..
    unfortunately its not in the business model of the nations of our planet..

    • Resources are never lost.. they are transformed and can be reclaimed..
      coinage was a way to carry metals to be traded for products made from the mailbox metals.. the Aztecs and the other ancient civilizations prized grains .. Amazon’s had raft gardens Aztecs had terraces of golden corn..the true wealth..

    • Could not agree with you more LOOB.
      My belief is this planet is not made to support elites, thieves, movie/sports stars, royalty, career politicians, warmongers, KKK … and many more lost criminal souls. But it will support any amount of population till next CME.

  15. Major..,
    About two weeks ago I had an early morning, vivid dream. I was working on something in my yard.., finished.., and stood up, looking at a cut on my knuckle – where I was and direction I was facing gives me a clear view directly west and the cascade Mountain Range. As I stood I saw a huge mushroom cloud rising. It was massive. And the direction was aligned with Seattle and the Naval yards at Bremerton. I dropped what tool I was holding and just stared. It was unbelievable and overwhelming. It was so vivid it woke me up.

  16. Risks to Banking Organizations…You didn’t mention their biggest risk, that if “the people” get more control of their currency, the powers that be won’t be able to print for their own benefit. No doubt most of the items you say about crypto is true and fraught with risk. Though in my mind there is a full on certainty the dollar will collapse as the criminals in charge will keep printing and giving to friends, family and used for buying votes. If your goal are gains by “investing” in crypto then you will likely be discouraged. If however you might want to be a part of trying to find a way to pull back some control of our currency, then go in with eyes wide open.

  17. I’m contemplating sueing California over the racist and discriminatory plan of paying off black slavery descendants. Native American ‘indians’ were there first, and suffered even more than black slaves. So where is OUR native paybacks? Unlike the faux Pocahontas wannabes, I have the DNA analysis showing that I am a small part CREE indian. So WHERE IS MINE?

    • Uhhmm … from whom did the Indians we all know from recent history take it from? I know you’re talking tongue in cheek but more and more archaeological findings are showing evidence that, at least people OTHER than the venerable Red Man, were there in much older times. The Americas were under slow but constant invasion on both coasts throughout history despite what the tenured professors say. Those who can trace their ancestry back that far, at least through RNA evidence, may want something other than wampum in payment so you might get to work honing your flint knapping skills.

      • There have been Indian apologists ever since we carved out peaceful areas in which to build cities. As soon as a danger ceases to be dangerous or a savage ceases to be savage, some people will advocate for those who bear resemblance to that [no longer] savage, attributing their own lifestyle and morals to those who are savage.

        This is why thumpers periodically come down on Mohamed for having a 9yo wife (back in the day when the average woman lived to the ripe old age of 31). Mohamed likely never bedded her until she was capable of giving him a child, but they ignore that, applying contemporary morals and standards to the Father of Islam while neglecting the folks from Asia who “get married” at birth.

        When Tecumseh was raining down terror in Ohio and the Indiana and Michigan territories, there were stuffed-shirts in Boston, lamenting the lot of the “poor, peaceful Red Man.” Meanwhile, the “poor, peaceful Red Man” was torture/murdering everyone he could find, who was not of his, or an allied tribe.

        In virtually every American Indian dialect, the word for “stranger” and the word for “enemy” are the same. Most of the Indians who were here when Cortés landed had been in North and South America only a few hundred years. They invaded and killed “Those Who Came Before” (the Navajo speak of these, because the last of the Cliff Dwellers were still around when the Navajo moved into the neighborhood).

        AFAIK there were no survivors from the (~3rd Century) “mound building” tribes of the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest, and it is likely the tribes which would eventually form the Iroquois Nation (the 11th Century, or thereabouts) mostly killed, then drove off or assimilated the remainder of the tribes which killed the “mound builders.”

        The folks of American Indian extraction who glom onto the “White Man go home” movement, drive me nuts. Had Europe not come to the Americas, these Indians would not exist in their current form, and the form in which they did exist would be raping and killing their neighboring tribes for sport, just like they were before the White, Black, and Yellow Man arrived. The “Columbus Day haters” apply contemporary morals and standards to a situation in which neither contemporary morals nor standards would exist, because the concepts of those morals and standards were brought here by the Spaniards, and later, the Brits & French…

  18. Covid day 2. I’m amazed how the zinc and ivermectin protocol broke my fever in only 12 hours. The lingering effects now are general tiredness and an inflamed sinus, nose drips and post nasal drip with a mild throat cough. Does not appear to be any deep-lung issues for me, but I have a nebulizer and protocols to use it if needed. My gut is also ‘shedding mucus’ with ‘the runs’. Staying hydrated now is key to getting well. I got no sleep last night as I was up on the toilet every hour. Today a local friend told me the island ‘cure’ for ‘the runs’…. Drink guava juice. It allegedly firms things up. Trying that today. Will see how that works by tomorrow.
    Another day of the protocol I listed yesterday, single dosing now, and 12mg ivermectin daily until Saturday. Sunday will test again if I feel good. Right now all I want to do is go back to bed… five steps from the toilet.

    • That’s what I’ve been saying for the past year-plus. When the Ivermectin blocks the replication of the virus it dies off pretty darned quick but you do have the residual effects of the infection to deal with – and, evidently, you didn’t have any dead parasites to sluff off either. That could be a wicked thing to get over, too. Immodium may be a good item to add to your drug list right about now.

  19. Your link for PMC Wagner goes to wackypedia, which defines PMCW as a right-wing (which means “left wing” in every country on the planet that’s not the United States) neonazi organization.

    “various elements of Wagner have been linked to neo-Nazis and far-right extremists.”

    Lessee, what political faction is Putin fighting in Ukraine?

    Could wackypedia possibly be in error?

    So, since this is demonstrably non-factual and judging by the way it’s written, agenda-driven, why would anyone assume anything else in the wiki is true or accurate?

    Just sayin’…

  20. dang I think I won the lottery with a sale like this…coffeebean coral has a really nice sale going on..some new bean mixes to… there’s nothing like home roasted coffee..second crack is my favorite..not to dark not to light..
    it’s been a while since I roasted some beans..
    with the weather we are having..I think it’s time to roast a few.
    a friend was telling me that they didn’t understand how to use a coffee maker they got at xmas.. lol I told them.. Turkish brew using hot sand is fun.. but I think they thought I was joking.. when I explained how to make coffee in their pot..

    https://www.coffeebeancorral.com/www/Products/Kona-Purple-Mountain-Organic__KONAPMTNORG.aspx

    • Kona coffee is all the ‘foreign’ rage, but I don’t care for the ‘bitter wine’ aftertaste. Take it from a local guy… the best coffee coming out of Hawaii is Kauai Estate coffee from the other end of the island chain. Smooth and delicious and every bit as strong.

      • I have an MZB account and was buying the ground Kauai Estate blends from them, until you commented on this a couple years back. At that time I searched them out, and began buying whole-bean direct from the Estate.

        Damn’ fine coffees, and thanks…

  21. Talked pretty tough old Jerome . Like a gangster . Vowed to destroy the world economy to save his skin . Good luck

  23. Just a thanks for this column! I’m a bit clearer on the (logic?) of this lunch money gambling parlor. I’m not sure I’m up to it since I don’t enjoy gambling, just winning. I think it requires an ADHD mind with a low level of inhibition for best results, along with a well trained gut. I would tend to move too late, both buying and selling. It’s still worth the exercise though, when I have time to devote full attention. Today’s read will require a reread, and some note taking.

    • My biggest problem (being the aforementioned adhd sort) is that I tend almost ALWAYS to take positions too soon and exit positions too soon. Consider yourself a better candidate for trading!!

Comments are closed.

Toggle Dark Mode