271. Protectionism Action #1

Will this be the start of the market drop? You kinda wonder how China can deliver steel pipes up to 99% discounts to our steel pipes. Is our government, tax laws, accounting laws, health plans, etc. THAT COSTLY? Or is it the unions? Believe me, we'll get to pay for this action.

270. Human Brother Sent me this Good Joke -- $50 Lesson

A $50 Lesson

I recently asked my friends' little girl what she wanted to be when she grows up. She said she
wanted to be President some day. Both of her parents, liberal Democrats, were standing there, so
I asked her, 'If you were President what would be the first thing you would do? '

She replied, 'I'd give food and houses to all the homeless people.'

Her parents beamed with pride.

'Wow...what a worthy goal.' I told her, But you don't have to wait until you're President to do
that. You can come over to my house and mow the lawn, pull weeds, and sweep my yard, and I'll pay
you $50.

Then I'll take you over to the grocery store where the homeless guy hangs out, and you can give
him the $50 to use toward food and a new house. '

She thought that over for a few seconds, then she looked me straight in the eye and asked, ' Why
doesn't the homeless guy come over and do the work, and you can just pay him the $50? '

I said, 'Welcome to the Republican Party.'

Her parents still aren't speaking to me.

269. Is This Too Good to be True?

As we continue to see stimulus money artificially project a good economy, some reporters continue to run with the herd rather than calling the hard facts. As I read this article I questioned the long-term benefits of the news I was reading. The end of the article brought the real picture back in focus. This is an article about the good, bad, and the ugly. I found it humorous that some reporters were marching in a parade with banners flying high celebrating the increase in consumer spending chanting "more to come, more to come." If you look at the dollars being spent I couldn't agree more; but, if you look at the number of products being sold I would think you might see no growth. Just yesterday we went "discount shopping" at the Wal-Mart Superstore. We just needed a few items, like cereal, cranberry sauce and sherbet. The wife keeps a log of the last two prices for each of the groceries and wasn't shocked that once again Wal-Mart raised the prices. Cereal from $1.96 to $2.50, cranberry sauce from $0.88 to $1.32 AND 2 ounces less and Sherbet from $2.00 to $2.50 AND 16 ounces less. Add bell peppers from $0.50 to 0.98 and can vegetables up 25% overall and you can see we have no choice to spend more! Shop at a different store and you will see even higher increases. How much longer will this continue before people stop buying things or simply can't afford them? The law of supply and demand will kick in and bring an ugly halt to buying other things -- food is a must, but if its taking more of your hard earned dollars, less is available for other things. Plus how does another 13 cents per gallon for gas this morning versus yesterday affect you? When this happens, inventories will again grow and the economy shrink causing the stock market to regress to much lower levels. Without a permanent fix to the economy, we continue to ride the roller coaster that we all know isn't flat and isn't a constant speed. Some see it as a risk, some see it as a thrill. When applied to the market, know when its safe to hold your arms up and duck your head. I feel we're still being cranked to the top before the first steep fall. Will I continue to play the game? To gamble that I will pull out before others? Yes. Keep an eye on Protectionism (remember?) and now also Inventories. The Housing market may be getting its last boost from home buyer credits. When you hear talks of firing up more printing presses or more stimulus/bailouts RUN!

268. Think twice Before Choosing Protectionism

There are two interesting articles today worth reading. The first article is about Obama's next step towards Protectionism -- remember what I said in previous posts about its affects on the market. The second article is a more reasonable explanation of how much waste of time the debate on the Yuan's value is and how it can take this market down more than the financial crisis did. This latter report reiterates what I have posted in the past and again summons caution in long-term investments. I also raises the flag some more up the flag pole signaling you to be on higher alert. I know I will be. I just wish Thunderhead would stop being anti-Wall Street!

267. More Good News - Drill, Drill, Drill. REALLY?

Hooray (unfortunately not "hurry"). Drill, drill, drill. So be it says Obama in this article. I have no clue as to whether the areas he is allowing will actually produce a enough oil to significantly reduce our foreign imports, but it is progress towards that goal and should increase jobs which is of more importance. Thank you Mr. President. I would now like to see a more detailed explanation of expectations and a meaningful time table. Are we also going to have to tolerate Congress to actually finalize this action? Can I hear it for bi-partisanship? Oops....this is same message O gave in his State of the Union but with a few paragraphs more. We're still over 1.5 - 2 years away BEFORE WE ACT! So, not so good news. Looks like the anointed one is just positioning for November elections, i.e., politics! Sorry to get your hopes up. How many more times will we hear this story before November? And will the states highlighted be tickled in a way they want to be? That is, Californians don't want to drill, Virginia does, as does Florida; But, Alaska -- its so far up there nobody really cares and are its votes significant?

266. When is it Our Turn?

An article articulating desperate actions by Spain to cut deficits: Cutting civil servant hiring by 90% compared to last year. When will we follow suit? Or haven't blown up the balloon enough and, thus, continue to do the complete opposite? When do we put the fire out instead of fueling it? Similarly, this article re the Eurozone inflation increase is handwriting on the wall for America. How bad have grocery price increases gotten in your area? Usually food prices and energy prices aren't included in the most common measure of inflation. But, when Walmart raises a box of cereal, my staple, by 30% since last week -- total of 37.6% in last 12 months -- and MOST its food even more in last year, you know life is going to get worse. Here's a company that has made discount pricing a household reality. It's becoming uncertain how much of a bargain even Walmart is lately. With more and more of a family's budget going towards staples and oil prices again rising are we again beginning a cycle downturn? Will jobless rates again increase as reported in the Eurozone? Will America continue to print money to hide the real bad economic news? I wouldn't be expecting great company earnings next quarter. Hence, summer doldrums as I previously predicted. Yes, we just heard a report of increased Consumer spending. But, was this just a splurge to cure the long-time blues? A chocolate eating binge to temporarily fix extended depression? Well, I'm going to remain positive -- just ate pounds of chocolate chip cookies last night -- and will believe the rest of America's investors will also remain in a blinded stupor of euphoria as the newspaper rags turn their tales to positive worldwide news -- they report in "attitude" cycles too. Surely the good news like Obama visiting Afghanistan military and Karzai, plus holding Sarkozy's hand in "promising" Iran sanctions in just a few WEEKS (heard that a year ago), and promising the reduction of nuclear arms along with Russia are the special icing flowers on the chocolate cake. However, the real news is the hard efforts the Eurozone is doing to keep its countries from doing a belly-up. Greece, Spain, Portugal, and Ireland have been in the news lately with REAL painful, but necessary actions to REALLY try to fix the problems on their side of the ocean. China is starting to crank up their engines again to ensure solid growth despite the protectionist debate by the West. So, in my opinion, while the rest of the world is actually addressing their issues, we continue to use rhetoric promising actions. This always leads to 3-4 weeks of waiting-to-see some results before the s**t hits the fan again. Darn. Just when I was feeling positive again, reality struck! Hang in there -- at least for a few weeks.

265. More HC Insurance Reform Company Woes

More businesses are added to the increasing list of companies taking losses as a result of the new HC Bill. If interested, read this.

264. Thank You George

Do we miss him yet? I want to thank ex-President George W. Bush for allowing the Iraqi people to have a Democratic election. This article summaries the political success they had in Iraq despite its continuing troubles. Here, instead we flail because our troubles are IN THE POLITICAL PROCESS! One country is building a stronger government, the other is destroying it. Canada is starting to look better and better.

263. Add 3M to the HC Casualty List

12 cents per share charge because of the HC Insurance Reform Bill! This article documents 3M's assessment and loss charge. Within WEEKS the major businesses are declaring their losses -- see previous posts during this past week. I getting scared that the stock market rally won't make it another 3 weeks as forecasted. Possibly this news will not be taken into consideration until actual earnings come out. I can only hope.

262. Open Door for SEIU

Once again the anointed One bypassed Congress to please the unions. This time to appoint Craig Becker, a top lawyer for the SEIU and AFL-CIO to the vacant National Labor Relations Board. Here we go -- now we're heading towards bypassing the secret union election process next. This article highlights this appointment and others Obama decided had to be made by him because bipartisan decisions couldn't be made. So, like an Executive Order that he used to handle no abortion funding in the Health Care mess, he used recess appointments ONLY while Congress is in recess. When does the poor management of our country stop? I give an "F" to Congress re this issue AND an "F" to O. As Glenn Beck hinted many months ago, SEIU has the puppet strings -- just look at Pelosi and you can see that by the fixed expression on her face when she talks. She looks like Howdy Doodie (again kiddies, Howdy was our Sesame Street).

261. Swoosh. Down the Drain Again.

Do I really feel heart-broken about a police officer who took out more than a $390,000 loan for an oversized house and now gets to continue to live in it even though it is currently worth only $250,000? Well, NO. We knew even with better occupations that we couldn't afford a loan that big! Why didn't he? I'm talking about the latest sob story put out there in this article to support O's latest BAILOUT, the SECOND TIME! Yes, the poor people living in rich houses that are now under foreclosure. What happened to EARNING what you owned. Dig in your pockets folks -- O's coming collecting again to provide another smoke screen for a few months that hides a housing market blaze our children and grandchildren will get to extinguish or at least experience. Just sprinkle fairy dust O -- all will be well (IDIOT)!

260. Hello. Hello. Anybody Listening?

Certainly the Democrats in Congress weren't listening. Here's an article about how AT&T got hit by Health Care. Note: "AT&T rival Verizon Communications Inc. was among 10 companies that sent a letter to congressional leaders in December warning that their costs would increase with the health care changes" is a quote from this article that also indicates that they will take a $1B charge (that's a loss write off morons who pushed the HC bill) AND possible cut HC benefits to employees. As told by the Republicans, this HC Bill is going to bring lots of misery! Not just because of the negative changes, but primarily because of COST. Way to go O! Guess I can't blame him alone -- he didn't vote himself in.

Next stop? How about telling sob stories about the lowly immigrants that need to be given amnesty so they can also be added to the Health care mess. Immigration screw-up is next folks. So far O has stirred up mud in Health care, Education, Financial System, Yuan, Israel to list only a few areas. Isn't it time you supporters of the Democratic tactics and policies start slapping yourself in the face and wising up. Or, better yet, move to your own inferior Socialist country and leave this one FREE? It's time to listen for the POP -- that's the removal of your head from your own %&# or someone else's %&# like the one who read teleprompters and mesmerized you with charm. Also, read a book instead of reading the Hollywood gossip columns and TV series which infiltrate your mind with Leftist propaganda.

259. Let's Start with HMO Customers

Where best to start the increase in premiums caused of the newly passed HC Insurance Reform than HMOs -- the lowest cost health insurance policies for those who can't afford more! And these people thought they were safe from tax increases. Some day every one will learn about the many HIDDEN TAXES just like the increase in HMO plans CAUSED by increase to their business.According to this article the HMO customers will see STEEP rises in premiums immediately in anticipation of the huge expenses they will need to cover later (the new high-risk uninsured). So much for penalizing only the rich! Oh, and did I mention LOSS OF JOBS! Well no, but the article did. Let's all rise and praise the anointed one for the beginning of a new lost decade.

258. How Will the HC Insurance Bill Affect Companies and You?

This article sheds some light on how businesses are going to be affected by the recently signed HC Insurance Reform bill -- don't know it's correct "political" name, but since its really only INSURANCE reform let me call it that. Please realize that for every dollar a business loses, the investors get penalized -- yes your 401-K, pensions, and personal portfolios -- AND the company passes through these charges to its customers via product price increases -- ouch, a double whammy. I hope you fools who pushed this bill through, as well as voted for the anointed one, especially feel the pain that this bill will do to your wealth. Oh gee, middle class is exempt right? And below those are the welfare class recipients who will be given just enough crumbs to survive but not enough to get them any further up -- Socialism. I suppose its better that we all suffer together -- the Socialist way -- than to let anybody succeed and lead everybody ahead.

257. I am So-o-o Proud of Mr. Blabber's party

YEAH, RIGHT! Can you believe the Democrats sided with sex offenders? Here's a quote from an article stating that not only did the Democrats vote down EVERY Republican amendment to the Health Care INSURANCE reform bill signed by Obama, but decided even sex offenders should be allowed to get it up should they need to offend again: "By 57-42, Democrats rejected an amendment by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., barring federal purchases of Viagra and other erectile dysfunction drugs for sex offenders. Coburn said it would save millions of dollars...". Even the millions of dollars savings couldn't convince the pea-brains of the Democrats (the REAL Arrogant Party of NO) to vote what's right for the country! Guess you know where their brains were. Didn't know the female Democrats had brains there though too. I bet Mr. Blabber got two votes. Does this stink or do my Common Scents need to be recalibrated?

256. Have the Investors Gone Mad?

As I look at the technical charts and compare them to the political and economic news across the world, I can only wonder whether the investors have gone mad. My charts still indicate 3-4 weeks of upward movement at least. Yet, the continuous Billions of Dollars the Democratic congress is pushing through via Job bills amidst Portugal's downgrade and Greece crisis dragging the Euro down confuses me. As the world problems continue to burn the other side of the world (Euro Zone), our largest importer, the dollar continues to gain strength against the Euro pushing commodity prices down and American exports down. The additional protectionism verbal battle over the price of the Yuan is background noise at the moment, but will play a more important role should any actions be taken by America -- note, the imbalance of trade is always a finger-pointing issue when world economies are under attacked by their own foolish spending and financial controls. What was that? An insinuation that America is spending too much? Oh no, we being the biggest debtor nation says we need to spend more and more to keep the number one spot. With over 20% of GDP in debt, compared to 9% in the 70's, when do we QUIT! We're following closely in Greece's shoes BUT have nobody but the IMF to bail us out -- and that would be UGLY for everybody, meaning not just We the People folks. Plus, what all the rumbling lately about the Housing Market again flailing? Well, for the last 3 months it has, right back to the slightly straight line growth, if you want to call it that, before the government threw the taxpayer money away -- just like the Cash for Clunkers. Too Big to Fail? Is America too Big to Fail? What if we run out of special money paper and ink?

So, how do we play the market? "Play" being the correct word at the moment. We certainly aren't "investing" (meaning long-term) at the moment. I would continue to be a bias technical gambler at the moment looking at 11,200-11,300, but with a safety parachute by my side and a quick release sell lever. As I said earlier, the ride might continue another 3-4 weeks. Ignore the Yuan, the Euro crisis, the home market issues, the government spending, the Health Care bill lawsuits. Put on your gambler's hat and keep you cards close to your chest. Sucker in some chips and get up AND WALK later (don't forget this latter piece of advice). I'm predicting huge summer doldrums. Not a gambler? Drop back ten and punt while you can. Don't forget to plan long-term too when taxes are higher -- take your long-term gains this year and start over with your hold strategies if that is your strategy.

255. Country Kickin'

You're gonna love this YouTube country western song "The Great Reneger". Really sums up President O. Thank you Squirrel Man for your contribution.

254. O's Begging and Keeping All the Truth from Seniors

Old Folks! Do I have your attention. I don't yet qualify for Medicare, but will in a couple of years. So, like most of the seniors too, I still have the logic to determine that O is again flapping his lips for votes instead of for We the People. This article summarizes his Ohio trip to beg for Obamacare votes. It highlights his visions for the seniors and Medicare. Please, someone tell me HOW his Obamacare will EXTEND THE SOLVENCY of Medicare ten years when he plans to ADD coverage for preventive care and fill the drug doughnut hole? Seems to me these alone will ADD to the cost the government will have to pay, meaning senior medicare payments from their Social Security checks WILL INCREASE! Duh! Of course President Non-specifics can't tell you where he's going to get $500B FROM Medicare to fund his overall Obamacare! Hmmm. Take $500B out, add preventive, plug the doughnut hole with more money -- simple logic and common sense tells you to don the gas masks and watch O's nOse grOw sOme mOre. We'll need to drag out the wood chippers to trim his nose soon. Isn't it time we hear the TRUTH and NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH from Washington? Jack Webb ("Dragnet" kiddies). Come back.

253. The French Don't Need "Protectionism" Translated

All aboard. Free handouts. Join the party. The French sure love to join the band wagon, or are they responsible for leaking "protectionism" to the press? I just posted about protectionism and now I return to the news mill and see this article where France is blaming Germany for its woes. Does this yield more credibility to my warning that the press is catching on and starting to make the air stink again? Be prepared for article after article re to protectionism-like activities throughout the world. Can we rise above the muck from the press? All SHOULD be well until some action of protectionism actually occurs! But, will the investors wait that long?

252. The PROTECTIONISM Word

Lo and behold, protectionism rhetoric and actions raises the dragon from its lair. Remember the CAUTION I gave you about steer clear of the protectionism word? O's administration didn't hear it I guess and has hurled one more egg at the red dragon. Less than a month ago the administration ignited a battle with China when they indicated that we will be selling arms to Taiwan. Was this because China is selling arms to Iran and won't cooperate with our sanction desires? The egg was the latest berating of the Chinese government for its Yuan policy, specifically if a country's currency is low compared to other countries it has an advantage in selling its products, i.e., Export Advantage. What's true these days is unknown. However, I did see numerous reports the last week that the Yuan actually gained strength against the dollar which would suggest that OUR exports to them and others have the advantage. Go figure. But, back to the bad economy finger-pointing, which is how I see it. O and crew think China is the blame for our bad economy. Couldn't be the mismanagement of our spending could it! Or the stupid Housing and financial crisis caused by OUR government. Or the ridiculous bailouts of companies that should have been left to fail. No. Now we are strapped with further increasing debt and have to BLAME it on somebody else. Hence PROTECTIONISM wars are starting. NOT good for the stock market. We are still in the infant stages of any protectionism war, but the NEWS PEOPLE are starting to pick up on it and that in itself is bad because we all know how much the news people influence things despite being wrong 80+ % of the time. So, watch your back -- we're on shaky grounds again. Hopefully this minor incident where China is reducing its Treasury debt (or is it -- see bottom of article) could just be more NEWS sensationalism. Yet, the news people are the WORD-people and next time they may just come out and use the actual word "protectionism." That would send markets spiralling down -- for today's actions see this.