UH OH! When you have Barry Eichengreen saying these things, then you are in toruble.

http://www.eurointelligence.com/article/article/germanys-choice.html?tx_ttnews[backPid]=901&cHash=af3031639a3b431f7d237567c3dd066d

The 2010--2011 duck season has now closed. Here is one of the highlights.

My grandson Sullivan and I went on our first duck hunt together.

Act decisively and with conviction. The Powell doctrine applied to $$$ policy.

Debt levels are holding back recovery....Thanks to Dr. Rothman of sending this along.

http://www.frbsf.org/publications/economics/letter/2011/el2011-02.html

Barry Eichengreen again.

http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/14/a-conversation-with-barry-eichengreen/

If you really want to know where the Stimulus money went...here's the answer.

This is why many economists (like me) have always been highly leery of fiscal policy from the spending side. It winds up as a political circus in what is done with the money. And if I am not mistaken, those states that took stimulus money are now bound to NOT reduce Medicaid eligibility requirements and expenditures back to 2008 levels once the stimulus money runs out, which of course is now. In other words, Medicaid dollars must continue to be spent at Stimulus program levels even when the funding from the stimulus dries up. Good luck friend!




http://www.commentarymagazine.com/viewarticle.cfm/where-did-the-stimulus-go--15610

What did the Fed know and when did they know it?

http://macromarketmusings.blogspot.com/2011/01/fomc-transcripts-show-interest-rates.html

This is a MUST READ analysis. Insight like this is why he deserved the Nobel prize.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/16/magazine/16Europe-t.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2&hp

He was a total junkie, but Mitch Hedberg is funny to me.

This dude is, well, funny.

Steven Wright's Humor
If you're not familiar with the work of Steven Wright, he's the famous erudite scientist who once said: "I woke up one morning, and all of my stuff had been stolen and replaced by exact duplicates".
His mind sees things differently than most of us do. Here are some of his gems:

1 - I'd kill for a Nobel Peace Prize.
2 - Borrow money from pessimists -- they don't expect it back.
3 - Half the people you know are below average.
4 - 99% of lawyers give the rest a bad name.
5 - 82.7% of all statistics are made up on the spot.
6 - A conscience is what hurts when all your other parts feel so good.
7 - A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.
8 - If you want the rainbow, you've got to put up with the rain.
9 - All those who believe in psycho kinesis, raise my hand.
10 - The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.
11 - I almost had a psychic girlfriend. But she left me before we met.
12 - OK, so what's the speed of dark?
13 - How do you tell when you're out of invisible ink?
14 - If everything seems to be going well, you have obviously overlooked something.
15 - Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.
16 - When everything is coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.
17 - Ambition is a poor excuse for not having enough sense to be lazy.
18 - Hard work pays off in the future; laziness pays off now.
19 - I intend to live forever. So far, so good.
20 - If Barbie is so popular, why do you have to buy her friends?
21 - Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.
22 - What happens if you get scared half to death twice?
23 - My mechanic told me, "I couldn't repair your brakes, so I made your horn louder."
24 - Why do psychics have to ask you for your name?
25 - If at first you don't succeed, destroy all evidence that you tried.
26 - A conclusion is the place where you got tired of thinking.
27 - Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.
28 - The hardness of the butter is proportional to the softness of the bread.
29 - To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research.
30 - The problem with the gene pool is that there is no lifeguard.
31 - The sooner you fall behind, the more time you'll have to catch up.
32 - The colder the x-ray table, the more of your body is required to be on it.
33 - Everyone has a photographic memory; some just don't have film.
And an all time favorite-
34 - If your car could travel at the speed of light, would your headlights work?

The Far East Midas Touch.....

Scott Sumner's posting is here:
www.themoneyillusion.com/?p=8456

Ronald McKinnon on inflation and the lessons of history.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704405704576064252782421930.html?mod=WSJ_Opinion_LEADTop

This is terrific. Jeffrey should love this!

http://johnbtaylorsblog.blogspot.com/2011/01/higher-investment-best-way-to-reduce.html

Dr. Doom and Cassandras...pass the salt please.

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2011/01/09/that_guy_who_called_the_big_one_dont_listen_to_him/?page=full

Nouriel Roubini has been saying "the end is near" for 30 years. Sooner or later he is going to get one right. Does that mean we should hang on his every word? Hardly. Moreover, in this week's posting on the "China Bubble" some unemployed German shoe shine boy (that is his description) commented in the comment section that he has been saying that China is ready to explode for years and no one listens. It makes him feel like "Cassandra" who is pictured above. To recall, Cassandra was given the ability to see into the future by the God Apollo. Apollo gave her this gift to try and win her love. When she did not return the love, Apollo still gave her the ability to see into the future but cursed her so that no one would ever believe her.
Apparently this made her quite mad.

Well, the great Dr. Rothman passes along this excellent piece on forecasting and how we should look at all great seers of the future with a glazed eye.

I can't tell you how many people I have known at the race track that get hot and think they have it made forever in their ability to pick horses. Wait two years and see them again and they don't have a nickel to their name and they are asking if they can borrow money. It's sad but happens all too often. Next time you are at the track and some bum comes up and wants to borrow money, tell my brother it is time to come home.

Lastly, Cassandra would not have to love me. Just tell me who she's got in the pick 6 today at Gulfstream. I'll believe her. We'll split the money with Apollo.

Sunday is for football.

More stress in the office.

The Midas Touch...no thanks.

Barry Eichengreen knows international economics.

http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/eichengreen26/English

The world is converging.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/072c87e6-1841-11e0-88c9-00144feab49a.html#axzz1AFVz3aXE

Ron Paul for President...he has "the Midas touch".

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/12/weekinreview/12chan.html?hp

The bursting of the China Bubble and what it will mean...the experts speak.

Steve Hanke from Johns Hopkins and the Cato Institute sent this to me. It is a collection of opinions of what might happen if in fact there is an asset bubble in China and what would happen if and when it pops. If you are interested in China at all it is worth the read. This is a highly readable presentation.


And yes, I do think it is a bubble.


http://www.funnyeconomist.com/ChinaBubble.pdf

The story behind the fiscal crisis in California.

Temper Temper!

Watch what you say because it's a bummer when it is your turn to govern....

Thanks to Dr. Rothman for sending this...


http://www.economics21.org/blog/goolsbee-vs-obama-and-biden

This is really worth the read...stark contrast with post-WWII history.

http://www.econbrowser.com/archives/2010/12/looking_back_at.html

More on the wars to come...

The war on Western Civilization will continue for generations and will never be won as long as the left of our country wants to continue to treat this as a cops and robbers problem. But we have some new wars that have been brewing and they are here now...1) the old vs. the young 2) public sector employees (especially unions) vs. the private sector and 3) public sector unions vs. private sector unions (this was discussed in yesterday's posting).
So, who you got?




http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/04/business/04labor.html?_r=1&nl=todaysheadlines&emc=tha2

The wars to come.....

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704111504576060092978223976.html?mod=djemEditorialPage_t

Name this picture...what caption would you give it?

Happy New Year! May this new year bring you joy and success.

Now listen to the old professor. Zing Zang is a new Bloody Mary mix out on the market. It is the favorite of the peeps down in New Orleans. It is by far the greatest Bloody Mary mix ever! Have a couple Bloody Marys and level out. You still have Sunday to heal up before you go back to work on Monday.

Take it from me...I know of these things.