Noticed first thing in the Washington Post this morning that the Obama administration is condemning the crackdown by the Gaddafi government in Libya on the protesters who are trying to regime change – or at least some sharing of the loot.
What struck me is that he’s sending in Hillary Clinton. Of course, Clinton is not going to Libya. She’s going to Geneva. Better shopping? Neutral ground? Or some place which doesn’t have the four percent Muslim population (France) or France, the landing zones for Libyans fleeing the country like Italy, or Greece where the bankrupt economy has people in the streets again, or the more obvious Western/Crusader haunts of the UK.
Toss in being a woman (not a value judgment on my part, just a statement of fact about who respects who in that part of the world, sorry) and seems to me about the only reasonable expectation will be a communiqué of some sort, which may come in time for the formal outbreak of civil war. (rim shot)
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So this gets us on to the idea of $100 oil which is weighing on the joke market.
I call it that since so much of the “easy money” has been going there.
Oh, there this morning? Look surprised!
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Now that Tim Geithner seems to actually believe the governments numbers on employment, cost of living, and so forth, there’s some suspicion that he’ll turn off the easy-money faucet, which in turn, will kick the market on the way down.
Frankly, when the market gets down to the 10,000 level, talk of easy money will pick up, again, since any other course leads to the third leg down (primary leg down #3, wave 3 chart here) from the nominal market top in 2002.
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Sure, headlines like “Gaddafi to address residents of west Libyan town” may sound hopeful. But watch the price of oil for the true barometer of what’s ahead.
Market should rally (strongly) today. Just remember, even dead cats bounce and the whole middle east is only 120 grains away from complete disaster. The theater going on is all sweet and nice, but like this will really help.
Walker “Punked”
As luck would have it, America is blessed on many fronts with such political acuity, not just what we’re seeing in the Middle East.
While the RRRR (rabid right radio ranters) waxes on eloquently about what a great guy gov. Scott Walker is, the rest of the world, thanks to literacy rates and the net – is getting a fine laugh at a “prank” phone call made to what’s quickly turned into a one-term governor.
The account at the Buffalo Beast website, in case you missed it, features a lengthy description of how Walker took the call from someone impersonating David Koch and then proceeded to say pretty much everything I’ve alluded to in terms of what’s really going on up in CheeseLand.
While TV stations in CheeseLand are soft-pedaling the story ["Professor: Prank call showed politics of budget battle"] I’ll just ask the same question I asked earlier this week, which no one seems to being taking seriously, yet.
Where’s the recall campaign?
Numbers of the Day
How about a heaping helping of Durable Goods?
New orders for manufactured durable goods in January increased $5.3 billion or 2.7 percent to $200.5 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau announced today. This increase followed three consecutive monthly decreases including a 0.4 percent December decrease. Excluding transportation, new orders decreased 3.6 percent. Excluding defense, new orders increased 1.9 percent. Transportation equipment, also up following three consecutive monthly decreases, had the largest increase, $10.9 billion or 27.6 percent to $50.5 billion. This was led by to nondefense aircraft and parts, which increased $7.3 billion.
Shipments
Shipments of manufactured durable goods in January, up four of the last five months, increased $0.6 billion or 0.3 percent to $202.9 billion. This followed a 2.3 percent December increase. Primary metals, up six consecutive months, had the largest increase, $0.9 billion or 4.0 percent to $23.0 billion.
Unfilled Orders
Unfilled orders for manufactured durable goods in January, up nine of the last ten months, increased $4.3 billion or 0.5 percent to $829.4 billion. This followed a 0.2 percent December decrease. Transportation equipment, up following two consecutive monthly decreases, had the largest increase, $2.3 billion or 0.5 percent to $475.7 billion.
And who needs tranks and uppers when there’s a weekly job report like this one?
In the week ending Feb. 19, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 391,000, a decrease of 22,000 from the previous week’s revised figure of 413,000. The 4-week moving average was 402,000, a decrease of 16,500 from the previous week’s revised average of 418,500.
The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 3.0 percent for the week ending Feb. 12, a decrease of 0.1 percentage point from the prior week’s unrevised rate of 3.1 percent.
The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending Feb.12 was 3,790,000, a decrease of 145,000 from the preceding week’s revised level of 3,935,000. The 4-week moving average was 3,892,750, a decrease of 54,750 from the preceding week’s revised average of 3,947,500.
Happy Days are here! We’re all saved! Hallelujah and bring on the bounce to 12,300! We’ll go down next week some more.
Evolution of the Next Business Model
Say, even if you don’t read our premium content over at www.peoplenomics.com you might by now be thinking “Gee, what will the next dominant business model be when corporatism bankrupts the world?”
As readers know, this is a critically important question with a possibly very simple answer: Cooperatives.
Ace Hardware, for example, is a national cooperative, right? (Didn’t know that, did’ja?) So, when I can, and if they have the items I’m after, I’ll spend my money at a co-op instead of a corporate store. With me?
So this is now, if you’ll pardon the pun, spilling into the morning coffee wars as a half-step toward the cooperative model by an outfit called “Our Mission Coffee”.
Can’t tell if OMC follows the “pure” co-op model – like Ace does – or whether it’s a hybrid of part ‘for profit’ but based on the local cooperatives that produce coffee elsewhere in the world. Regardless, the high-ethic replacement for least cost and shareholder maximums is coming into sight.
Call it what you will, this is the future being born…the after-Corporatism popping before your eyes – if you know where to look.
No such Luck
A reader who watches sent me a note saying “OMG look at your FAZ! Trading at $41 – what do they know we don’t???”
Excitedly I looked. Damn, just a 5:1 reverse split, so for each 1,000 shares I now have 2009 (but they are more spendy, lol.
Would have made a nice newer airplane or another 20-acres…
(more after this…)
