Updated 10:35 am U.S. Central Time:  Ukraine media is now reporting its forces have retaken 90 settlements in the Kherson region.  Shortly after, the Russians reported began lobbing S-300 miles into Kupyanks, according to state media. One less worry in Ukraine:  Where will war reconstruction money come from?  The answer: EBRD to commit up to … Read More

Near as we can figure it, there’s no more sensible way to consider the week ahead than to close your eyes (have your computer or phone read the column to you) and imagine the GlobalSit (“h” optional) as a scatter plot.  We’re all over the place save two reasonably firm data points. The CFNAI Out … Read More

The past couple of Sunday’s we have covered how to build a really nice sound conditioned room for your home listening enjoyment.  And last weekend, we got into the nuts and bolts of getting a computer equipped with a DAW and learning a bit about that side of things. Today, we will talk about owning continuous programming … Read More

Wherein we look at a nearly 800-point increase in the Dow and wonder “WTF?”  There was no driving news, the Fed will still meet and raise rates. The Davos crowd is still pressing for its Global Reset to scam World Government into being.  AND we still see gasoline prices rising this week. While “down here … Read More

Won’t mince today:  The longer-term view of long wave economics offers the uncomfortable idea that not only will the Biden (denied so far) recession get worse, but the odds of full-on Depression are skyrocketing, as well. As this happens, my consigliere’s Warm-Up Wars will multiply such that we can only see World War III when the outcome … Read More

A number of our readers did very well in the market action yesterday.  Our own (little) account was up a shade over 3-percent, which was nice, too. But it reminded me there’s an underlying theme to how we trade that most people don’t have the patience to work out.  “One of these days, I need … Read More

Oh-oh!  Into Prospect Theory (PT), Cumulative Prospect Theory (*CPT) and whether investment choices are driven by quantum bounding or, conversely, give rise to it? A little early to “go heavy and deep” but over the past couple of weeks a strangelet of quantumness has been nagging at me.  Specifically, how free choice may indeed be … Read More

Pardon the brevity today.  It’s a time when investing can be serious business.  Especially when the economic Long Wave is as much calling the shots about our futures as much as the over-hyped “pretend leaders” who haven’t solved any real problems facing America for several decades. Yes, Washington has listened to so much “green-speak” that … Read More

BUT first:  NY Fed’s Empire State Manufacturing Data just out: “Business activity declined modestly in New York State, according to firms responding to the October 2022 Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The headline general business conditions index fell eight points to -9.1. New orders, unfilled orders, and shipments were all little changed from last month. Delivery … Read More

In last Sunday’s ShopTalk,  we ambled through some of the construction fine points of building a room suitable for high performance sound.  Today, with a converted room at the ready – silent lights, HVAC sound boots, dual airlock doors, and sand-filled walls plus a fortune in Auralex wall coverings – we need to put something in our … Read More

We’ve never seen charts like the ones this weekend in more than 50-years of financial writing. Everything lines up for the period from Monday out to two weeks from Wednesday. What will happen is anyone’s guess. But we focus heavily on the charts today because they offer a lot to think about. So, sit down, … Read More

Delightful email from back-up consigliere out in Century City overnight.  Sizing up the Thursday market action “Just vacuuming up the sucker money.  Dow erases 500 point loss, surges into huge gain in rollercoaster day..” With a link to Wall Street rollercoaster: Dow erases 500 point loss, surges into huge gain. Running out the Bears to run, anyone? … Read More

Hard not to be in a festive mood: This is the Good Side of Inflation reports! This is the day we told you was coming – the day when not only do Consumer Prices come out (yuck, right?) but also the day the new – higher – Social Security Payments lock-in. As we told you … Read More