A unique and safe way to buy gold and silver 2013 Passport To Freedom Residency Kit
Buy Gold & Silver With Bitcoins!

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Gold World News Flash

Save Your ASSets First

Gold World News Flash

GoldSeek.com Radio: Louis Navellier, John Rubino, The International Forecaster, and your host Chris Waltzek

Posted: 12 Feb 2012 04:00 PM PST

Headline news & the Market Weatherman Report. Spotlight Stock Picks. Host Chris Waltzek & Bob Chapman, The International Forecaster discussion and answer listener's questions. GUESTS: Louis Navellier, The Little Book That Makes You Rich John Rubino, The Coming Collapse of the Dollar


Where a Nation’s Gold and Your Gold Should be Held – Part II

Posted: 12 Feb 2012 01:00 PM PST

In Part I of this article we looked at the growing trend of governments moving their gold into their own home vaults to remove the influence and potential seizure of their gold when political policies clash with the country where the holding central bank was situated. We covered the dangers of holding gold at home and the difference in attitude individual's should have towards the problem of where and how to hold gold.


International Forecaster February 2012 (#4) - Gold, Silver, Economy + More

Posted: 12 Feb 2012 03:15 AM PST

2012 is going to be a difficult year, but not as dreadful as anticipated. The neutralization process, as usual, we covered over by the availability of money and credit. We have already seen that via Fed $1 trillion loans to the ECB and the admission by the Fed that QE 3 is on the way. In Europe banks have borrowed $3.2 trillion and they find they will need $1 trillion more. These borrowings are more than troubling and indicate that there are 523 banks in Europe in serious trouble.


Taco Bell refuses 1 oz gold coin for .99 taco

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 07:48 PM PST

Saturday Night With the ‘Doomsday Preppers'

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 04:53 PM PST

[Ed. Note: Part 1, Part 3, Part 4.]

by SGT:

So I just flipped on the TV this late Saturday evening and took a brief glance at the "guide" to see what's on which led me to NatGEO channel and a episode of 'Doomsday Preppers'. Although I'd heard about it, I've never seen it before. I'm posting Part 2 of the episode I am watching right now so you can see the portion I just watched – as I write this. Fast forward to the 9:00 minute mark to see where I started watching. The narrator in this show repeated mentions the "total economic collapse and chaos' as one of the primary reasons these folks "prep". I'm pretty sure that makes the people on this show 'enemies' of the U.S. government. Not sure if this is 'predictive programming' or 'educational' television, maybe it's both. But one thing's for sure – most of these folks are a helluva lot more prepared than most Americans.

Silver Update: 2/11/12 Socialism Fails

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 03:03 PM PST

Whither Gold

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 03:03 PM PST

The prophetic words of Antal Fekete in his now infamous 'essay' on Gold are as relevant now (perhaps more so) as they were when he first wrote them 15 years ago - especially as the Euro-zone migrates from lossening fiat-money to quasi-money (greek pharma bonds for instance). While summarizing this must-read discussion of mainstream economic orthodoxy's mis-teachings is impractical, his initial introduction sets the stage for what is to come: "The year 1971 was a milestone in the history of money and credit. Previously, in the world's most developed countries, money (and hence credit) was tied to a positive value: the value of a well-defined quantity of a good of well-defined quality. In 1971 this tie was cut. Ever since, money has been tied not to positive but to negative values -- the value of debt instruments." After a brief, clarifying history of money, Fekete goes on to discuss the misnomers of currency depreciation, gold as wealth, the failings of kicking the can, quantitative easing, and finally in the misunderstanding of interest rates themselves - seeing them as nothing more than merely bribe-money, trying to persuade reluctant holders of irredeemable promises to hang on a while longer. Paradoxically, gold's importance is growing while its dispersal from official hoards and the mines continues apace. Dispersed gold represents latent power, far greater in scope than its nominal market value, as sound credit can be built only upon a gold base.

Log Scale chart of the price of Gold.

On Currency Depreciation:

Mainstream economic orthodoxy teaches that a depreciating currency is a boon to the country, and a valid tool in the hands of the government to increase competitiveness and thus to reduce or to eliminate the current account deficit. A debased currency makes the country an attractive place for foreigners in which to buy and an unattractive place in which to sell. Exports are boosted, imports curtailed; thus the deficit is narrowed.

 

Terms of Trade for Seven of the world's largest trade regions

 

This is one of the most pernicious doctrines ever concocted -- as demonstrated both by theory and practice. Deliberate currency depreciation puts the country at a clear disadvantage, causing its terms of trade to deteriorate. As all items for export have imported components, no one can maintain for long low export prices in the face of ever rising cost of imports.

 

On Gold as 'wealth':

It is important for us to realize that every word of the doctrine on the sterility of gold is an outright lie. Not only can the owner of gold earn a return in gold on his holdings even under the regime of irredeemable currency, but gold is the only form of tangible wealth that can be lent out at interest and that is in constant demand as such.  


3 Month Gold Forward Offered Rate (Lending Gold On Swap Against the USD)


There is a lively gold loan market in the world: gold is put out in loans and is borrowed at interest on a regular basis. It is used in financing great capital projects as well as trade -- in the same way (although not on the same scale) as it always did under the gold standard.

 

On 'kicking the can':

The term `redistributive society', as it is used by both its protagonists and antagonists, refers to the redistribution of wealth and income -- after they have been produced. More ominously, a movement to redistribute future losses is afoot. If successful, losses will be perpetuated and passed on to society. The scheme will allow the indolent, the inefficient, the inept, and the consistent loss-maker to continue in business indefinitely at the expense of the industrious, the efficient, and the profit-conscious.

 

On Quantitative Easing & Monetization:

The central bank goes into the open market and buys government bonds. As a result bond prices go up or, what is the same, interest rates go down. But the flipside of this is that now there is even more irredeemable currency in circulation. This cannot help but make the pace of currency depreciation increase.

 

The rational basis upon which bond values rest was overthrown when gold-redeemability of the currency was abolished. The fanatic denial of this fact is central to mainstream economic orthodoxy.

 

On Interest rates:

Under the regime of irredeemable currency, interest is merely bribe-money, trying to persuade reluctant holders of irredeemable promises to hang on a while longer.

 

A low and stable interest-rate structure, in particular, cannot be achieved without making credit gold-bonded. This elementary truth is now in the public domain, even though our universities have been somewhat tardy in accepting it.

 

And on the future of Gold:

Paradoxically, gold's importance is growing while its dispersal from official hoards and the mines continues apace. Dispersed gold represents latent power, far greater in scope than its nominal market value, as sound credit can be built only upon a gold base. When the dispersal of gold reaches a certain threshold (nobody knows where exactly this threshold is), a metamorphosis of money will take place. Gold will reclaim its throne as constitutional monarch in the monetary and credit system of the world.

 

Charts: Bloomberg

Whither Gold


2012: The Beginning of the END for the U.S. ?Petrodollar?!

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 01:53 PM PST

A major portion of the U.S. dollar’s valuation stems from its lock on the oil industry and if it loses its position as the global reserve currency the value of the dollar will decline and gold will rise. Iran’s migration to a non-dollar based international trade system is the testing of the waters of a non-USD regime…transition to a world in which the U.S. Dollar suddenly finds itself irrelvant. [Let me explain.] Words: 1200 So says Marin Katusa ([url]www.caseyresearch.com[/url]) in edited excerpts from the original article* which Lorimer Wilson, editor of www.munKNEE.com (Your Key to Making Money!) and www.FinancialArticleSummariesToday.com (A site for sore eyes and inquisitive minds) has edited ([ ]), abridged (…) and reformatted (some sub-titles and bold/italics emphases) below for the sake of clarity and brevity to ensure a fast and easy read. The article’s views and conclusions are unaltered and no personal comments have been included to maintain the inte...


Get Positioned: ?Gold Rush? Will Cause Gold Stocks to SOAR ? Here?s Why

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 01:53 PM PST

Whatever their reasons, the number of investors wanting exposure to gold is increasing. Many who ignored it a decade ago are now buying. Those who started buying, say, five years ago, continue purchasing it today in spite of paying twice what they paid then. Slowly but surely, it’s becoming more important to more people…but what happens when it becomes a must-own asset to a substantial majority instead of a small minority? Sure, the price will rise, probably parabolically, but putting aside speculation on the price of gold for now, have you thought about what happens if you have trouble finding any actual, physical gold to buy? [Let's explore that possibility and what that would mean for gold stocks*in such an eventuality.] Words: 870 So says Jeff Clark ([url]www.caseyresearch.com[/url]) in edited excerpts from his original article* which Lorimer Wilson, editor of www.munKNEE.com (Your Key to Making Money!) and www.FinancialArticleSummariesToday.com (A site for sore eyes...


Greece Now Meeds €145bn Bailout to Avoid Collapse

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 01:49 PM PST

Greece could need an extra €15bn (£12.5bn) of international aid in addition to the €130bn in the works as the result of its continued failure to stem public spending.

[Ed. Note: Related.]

by Emma Rowley, Telegraph.co.uk:

Ahead of a crucial parliamentary vote to agree to a series of stark austerity measures designed to meet lenders' requirements, it emerged the so-called Troika of rescuers are preparing to plough more funds into the troubled European nation.

Amid scenes of continued mounting social unrest, politicians must today decide whether to sign off fresh austerity measures demanded by the country's international lenders in order to release a second aid package to Athens.

The rescue must be secured by March 20 in order to stave off bankruptcy. It is on that date that the Greek government has to pay back €14.5bn of its debt to holders of its bonds.

On Saturday night, Lucas Papademos, the Greek prime minister, told the nation in a televised address that a rejection of the deal would lead to "uncontrollable economic chaos and social explosion".

Read More @ Telegraph.co.uk

Precious Metals: The Only Alternative

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 01:44 PM PST

by Jeff Nielson, Bullion Bulls Canada:

One of the reasons why I stay very active in discussions with readers on our forum is that it is a wonderful way of keeping in touch with what the ordinary investor is thinking. More specifically, such interaction is frequently the inspiration for my commentaries, and that is once again the case with this topic.

The scenario is a familiar one for veteran investors in this sector. Gold and silver have again become temporarily imprisoned in a trading range. Meanwhile the anti-gold and silver propaganda machine is busy sowing doubt and creating uncertainty. Their goal is simple: play upon the fears of newer investors to the sector, or wear them out via ordinary impatience.

This piece is especially aimed at those newer investors, because it delivers a simple yet irrefutable message: you have no choice other than to protect yourselves with precious metals. To illustrate how the bankers and their servant politicians have forced us into focusing our investments in precious metals requires visiting and understanding three concepts.

Read More @ BullionBullsCanada.com

What's crazier than creationism and gold? It's in your wallet

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 12:28 PM PST

5:32p PT Saturday, February 11, 2012

Dear Friend of GATA and Gold:

Lawrence Summers, former U.S. treasury secretary and president of Harvard, is reported to have remarked the other day that "the gold standard is the creationism of economics":

http://www.gata.org/node/10955

Of course Summers meant the worst sort of disparagement, to liken gold standard advocates to religious crazies. And yet there are various creationisms and various gold standards.

What is called young earth creationism may have begun in 1650 with the Anglican bishop of Ireland, James Ussher, who famously calculated from his biblical research that God had created the universe in October 4004 B.C. Old earth creationism doesn't attempt to pinpoint the moment, arguing that the Creator's time frame is not man's and that His day as recounted in Genesis cannot be known to man. Old earth creationists may consider the issue settled by God's rebuke to Job: "Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the Earth? Declare, if thou hast understanding." Despite their vast presumption to knowledge, even presidents of Harvard weren't around then.

... Dispatch continues below ...

ADVERTISEMENT

Sona Discovers Potential High-Grade Gold Mineralization
at Blackdome in British Columbia -- 13.6g over 1.5 Meters

From a Company Press Release
November 22, 2011

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- With its latest surface diamond drilling program at its 100-percent-owned, formerly producing Blackdome gold mine in southern British Columbia, Sona Resources Corp. has discovered a potentially high-grade gold-mineralized area, with one hole intersecting 13.6 grams of gold in 1.5 meters of core drilling.

"We intersected a promising new mineralized zone, and we feel optimistic about the assay results," says Sona's president and CEO, John P. Thompson. "We have undertaken an aggressive exploration program that has tested a number of target zones. Our discovery of this new gold-bearing structure is significant, and it represents a positive development for the company."

Sona aims to bring its permitted Blackdome mill back into production over the next year and a half, at a rate of 200 tonnes per day, with feed from the formerly producing Blackdome mine and the nearby Elizabeth gold deposit property. A positive preliminary economic assessment by Micon International Ltd., based on a gold price of $950 per ounce over eight years, has estimated a cash cost of $208 per tonne milled, or $686 per gold ounce recovered.

For the company's complete press release, please visit:

http://www.sonaresources.com/_resources/news/SONA_NR18_2011-opt.pdf


The historical gold standard pegged a currency to a fixed amount of gold and made the currency convertible. Essentially the money was gold and gold was the money, often with silver thrown in, though never at a very satisfactory ratio. Thus currency devaluations were obvious; there was no fudging them, as when the London Gold Pool, the gold price-rigging mechanism of the Western central banks throughout the 1960s, a coordinated and public scheme of gold reserve dishoarding meant to keep the value of the U.S. dollar at one 35th of an ounce of gold, collapsed in March 1968.

Then there is the more flexible sort of gold standard operating behind today's dollar, in which the U.S. government and the central banks of its allies undertake largely surreptitious gold sales, leases, swaps, and derivatives operations, essentially short sales of gold, to maintain the value of their currencies.

Gold trader, market analyst, and mining entrepreneur Jim Sinclair has been anticipating implementation of a gold standard without convertibility, what he calls a gold cover clause, in which the U.S. government would pledge to keep its money supply in a fixed ratio to its gold reserve. Of course such a mechanism might require of the U.S. government a lot more transparency with its gold reserve and international agreements, formal and informal, than it lately has permitted, the Federal Reserve in particular having recently been forced by GATA to acknowledge that its has many impossibly sensitive gold-related secrets:

http://www.gata.org/node/9917

And then there might be still another gold standard, a system in which currencies are simply always judged against each other in freely trading markets, much as was proposed by the Austrian school economist Friedrich Hayek in 1977. Gold inevitably would be one such currency, and given the world's traditional and renewed enthusiasm for it, probably the leading measure of all the rest. At least the many decades of Western central bank intervention in the gold market, both open and surreptitious, suggest that central banks know damned well what their primary competitor is.

Of course GATA may incline toward something like the latter gold standard, insofar as restoration of a traditional gold standard would have the government rather than the free market again determining the price of gold.

If all these gold standards are indeed crazy ideas, what can be said of the current international monetary system, in which only one country issues the world reserve currency, a boom-bust cycle is injected into most economies, the world is expropriated through the reserve currency-issuing country's chronic trade deficits, big and parasitic financial institutions are enriched and rescued by governments at the expense of the working class, and more and more government intervention is required to prevent markets from manifesting themselves and restoring some democracy and transparency to the planet?

Of course until very recently Summers himself was a primary architect of this system, and yet he presumes to mock both creationism and gold's monetary functions. Now that's crazy.

CHRIS POWELL, Secretary/Treasurer
Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee Inc.

* * *

Join GATA here:

California Investment Conference
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Hyatt Grand Champions Resort
Indian Wells, California, USA

http://cambridgehouse.com/conference-details/california-investment-confe...

Support GATA by purchasing DVDs of our London conference in August 2011 or our Dawson City conference in August 2006:

http://www.goldrush21.com/order.html

Or by purchasing a colorful GATA T-shirt:

http://gata.org/tshirts

Or a colorful poster of GATA's full-page ad in The Wall Street Journal on January 31, 2009:

http://gata.org/node/wallstreetjournal

Help keep GATA going

GATA is a civil rights and educational organization based in the United States and tax-exempt under the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. Its e-mail dispatches are free, and you can subscribe at:

http://www.gata.org

To contribute to GATA, please visit:

http://www.gata.org/node/16


ADVERTISEMENT

Prophecy Coal (TSX: PCY) Wins Positive Feasibility Study
for the 600-MW Chandgana Power Plant in Mongolia

Company Press Release
January 17, 2012

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Canada -- Prophecy Coal Corp. (TSX: PCY, OTCQX: PRPCF, Frankfurt: 1P2) has received a positive feasibility study for the company's 600-megawatt Chandgana Mine-Mouth Power Project in central Mongolia. The report was independently prepared by Ralf Thomsen, project manager at Steag, a German firm specializing in the planning, financing, construction, and operation of highly efficient thermal power plants for fossil fuels.

The study covers technical specifications, deployment, and financial analysis of a 4x150-mw thermal power plant to be built adjacent to Prophecy's Chandgana Tal coal deposit, which contains 140 million tonnes of measured coal. Last year the power plant received a construction license and the coal deposit received a mining license. Engineering, procurement, and construction management selection and project financing discussion have begun and are expected to be concluded this year.

Construction is planned to start in April 2013, with the first 150-mw unit being commissioned in October 2015 and subsequent units to start in April 2016, October 2016, and April 2017. With proper maintenance the project will have 30 years of commercial operation.

For the complete statement from the company, including maps and charts, please visit:

http://www.prophecycoal.com/news_2011_jan17_prophecy_receives_power_plan...

The Liberty Option

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 11:29 AM PST

from internetanchorman.tv:

The Liberty Option is the first documentary film by popular youtuber Fabian4Liberty, Fabian Calvo. The Liberty Option examines today's destruction of our Republic at the hands of crazed criminal bankers and politicians. The son of immigrant parents who fled the tyranny of communist Cuba, Fabian discusses growing up seeing his parents live the American Dream. Now a father of two small children, he refuses to accept the role of complacent bystander in a country descending into central planning and TSA checkpoints.

The Liberty Option brings together a diverse cast of interviews, including Florida representative Jim Frische, the Mogambo Guru Richard Daughty, and the head of the Tampa Bay CAIR (Council of American Islamic Relations). This hard hitting 32 minute film emphasizes the economic and individual liberties that were once a fabric of the American Republic are being torn apart at the hands of a small group of elites, hell bent on the creation of a new 21st feudal system.

The Liberty Option examines the deregulation of Wall Street, Washington's Lobby Culture, foreign wars, and the continued slip into an American police state. The film reminds us that our sacred Constitutional Republic is worth fighting for, and that "We the People" can defeat a small band of ego driven central planners.

Warren Pollock STILL Disagrees with Gonzalo Lira

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 11:28 AM PST

No 1979 Redux! – 1971 & Gold, Steel, Oil, Labor, Empire, Breakdown

from WEPollock:

A Warning Flag For Silver

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 10:36 AM PST

from TFMetalsReport.com:

As you know, I'm very excited about the prospects for the fiat-conversion price of silver this year. It's going to a big year, perhaps even historic. That does not mean, however, that silver will move in a straight line up. I still believe the The Evil Empire intends to dramatically lessen, if not eliminate, their long-time manipulative short position. However, a careful review of the situation at ground level leads me to think that we're not out of the woods yet.

As you know, silver has already had a big 2012. Silver closed on 12/30/11 at $27.92/ounce. It closed yesterday at $33.60. In just six weeks, this means silver is already UP over 20%. Spectacular! At this rate, silver would be $40 by April 1st, $57 by mid-summer, $83 by fall and $120 by year end. Now, of course, the prospect of $120 silver makes you and I very excited. Jamie, Blythe and Ruprecht…not so much.

Read More @ TFMetalsReport.com

Pento - Looming Debt Market Collapse to Destroy the Dollar

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 09:13 AM PST

Today Michael Pento told King World News the large trade deficit and desire to consume foreign goods is evidence that the United States is growing weaker by the day. Pento, who founded Pento Portfolio Strategies, also said foreigners may soon start to reject the idea of purchasing US bonds. Pento had this to say about the situation: "The Main Stream Media is extolling the virtues of our rising U.S. trade deficit as a sure sign the economy is well on the road to a full and viable recovery. It was reported this week that our level of trade imbalance jumped to a six-month high in December to $48.8 billion (up 3.7%), from $47.1 billion in the prior month. For all of 2011, the shortfall grew 12% to $558 billion, the most since 2008."


This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Treasury Market Panic Reversal Due To Little Known Forces Called Supply and Demand

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 09:11 AM PST

Treasury Market Panic Reversal Due To Little Known Forces Called Supply and Demand

Courtesy of Lee Adler of the Wall Street Examiner

The Treasury market panic saw a bit of a reversal this week, partly due to an unexpected, large increase in supply because of a sharp drop in Federal tax revenues over the past couple of weeks, and partly due to the market misunderstanding of Thursday morning's news. The "better than expected" weekly unemployment claims data was one thing. Some piling on the "risk on" trade as a result of news of a deal for another Greek bailout, was another. But we are more interested in the more esoteric and little known drivers of prices, such as "supply" and "demand."

The short term knee-jerk reactions of hedge fund traders to news "don't impress me much." For one thing, today's (2-9) news has a shelf life of about 20 seconds. Likewise, traders are prone to misinterpreting "news" depending on their currently predominant position.

Since the boat is loaded long Treasuries, any "good" economic news triggers a one day selloff. When those selloffs come within the bounds of a trading range, they're nothing more than noise. To confirm a reversal in Treasuries we need a bona fide breakout. First, the 10 year yield needs to break 2.10, and then it needs to break 2.40. If that were to happen, it would signal a long term reversal. There are some signs that we're headed there, but we're not there yet. The jury is still considering the case.

In recent weeks the Treasury buying panic was helped by reduced supply, triggered by a massive bulge in withholding taxes from late December to late January. That bulge has now subsided, and the Treasury suddenly appears to be running short of cash. It made a surprise announcement today that it would need to raise a quick $20 billion in a 64 day CMB to be auctioned next week.

What had been the beneficial impact of reduced supply could reverse into greater than expected supply in the weeks ahead if tax revenues fall short of the government's optimistic estimates. The daily withholding data shows those revenues dropping but then pausing over the last few days, so it's not completely clear yet where that trend is headed. The data for the coming week should give us a better handle.

We'll also keep an eye on the dollar. The dollar's strength last year was primarily due to capital flight out of Europe. If the fears that drove those flows should ease, the dollar will weaken along with reduced demand for Treasuries. There have been hints of that in conjunction with the ECB's giant Long Term Refi Operation (LTRO) on December 21. The next one is scheduled for February 29. I'll also continue to review the flows associated with that in the Fed Report update this weekend.

 
Get regular updates the machinations of the Fed, Treasury, Primary Dealers and foreign central banks in the US market, in the Fed Report in the Professional Edition, Money Liquidity, and Real Estate Package. Click this link to try WSE's Professional Edition risk free for 30 days!

Greece at the Point of no Return

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 08:11 AM PST

Wolf Richter   www.testosteronepit.com

"The European Union is suffering under Germany," Georgios Karatzaferis said on Friday. He is the president of the right-wing LAOS. With 15 members in parliament, the party is a minority partner in the coalition cabinet of party-less technocrat Prime Minister Lucas Papademos. Karatzaferis accused German Chancellor Angela Merkel of trying to "impose her will on Southern Europeans." He called the Netherlands, Austria, Finland, and Luxembourg "satellite states" of Germany. And he said that the center of the EU was no longer in Brussels but in Berlin.

But the true toxin in his outburst was the phrase: "I cannot accept this credit agreement." With it, he backtracked on his support for the austerity package agreed to amid flickers of hope the day before. And it pushed Greece a step closer to disorderly default and bankruptcy.

To avoid that fate, Greece must make a €14.5 billion bond payment on March 20, but it won't be able to unless it receives the next bailout payment, this one for €130 billion, a mind-boggling 56% of Greece's shriveling GDP. That payment process has to be initiated over the next few days, according to ratings agency Fitch, to give all countries and institutions involved sufficient time to deal with the administrative complexities of bailing out a country with taxpayer money.

On Thursday, for a few minutes at least, hope was flying high in the media: the three governing parties had agreed on an austerity package that included cutting the minimum wage by 22% and trimming the bloated public sector. But the fallout was immediate.

Deputy Labor and Social Security Minister Yiannis Koutsoukos, a member of the socialist PASOK, resigned in protest over the cuts in social programs; he hadn't been informed about them, nor had anyone asked him, he said.

Unions called for protests and a general strike for Friday and Saturday. The measures throw the unemployed, retirees, and young people into misery, said Ilias Iliopoulos, head of the union for civil servants. "We will not accept that, there will be a social revolt."

Greece's Police union threatened Troika inspectors with arrest. In a written declaration sent to representatives of the Troika, the union accused them of trying to overthrow democratic order in Greece, injuring national sovereignty, and robbing the Greek people of important goods.

The small tabloid Dimokratia featured Merkel in Nazi uniform (joe.ie). The headline, "Memorandum Macht Frei," evoked the infamous text above the entrance of the Auschwitz concentration camp. And demonstrators burned a German flag in front of the parliament.

Friday, public transportation came to a halt in Athens. Leaflets were handed out with Wanted printed on them, offering a reward of €1 euro for the arrest of a "Troikan." Peaceful demonstrations were followed by violent ones where demonstrators threw Molotov cocktails and rocks at police, who responded with teargas and clubs. More ministers offered their resignation. And on Saturday, the Prime Minister warned of collapse if parliament failed to agree on the austerity package. For more on the rough politics of bailout extortion, read.... Greece's Extortion Racket Maxed Out.

As the situation veers toward hopeless, it follows the step-by-step procedure laid out by Otmar Issing, former member of the Bundesbank and the ECB—a procedure that has been happening for months.... Kicking Greece out of the Eurozone.

The Troika hasn't always played hardball. For two years, it sent billions of euros to Greece to keep it afloat for a month or two at a time—though Greece had systematically misrepresented its deficits and debt since before it acceded to the Eurozone. In return for the bailout billions, the Troika asked for reforms. The Greek government promised them but failed to implement many of them. Politicians, ministries, and agencies refused to go along. The Greek people took to the streets. The bailout billions went up in smoke. The economy got worse. And Greece's refusal to wholeheartedly embrace these reforms exceeded Teutonic patience and willingness to throw ever more money their way.

So the Troika is letting Greece twist in the wind. At risk are €130 billion—many times larger than the smallish amounts with which it had been spoon-feeding Greece. If the payment were €5 billion, it would be made, if only to delay the inevitable another month. But €130 billion, 56% of Greece's GDP, won't happen unless all conditions down to the last iota are met, humiliating to Greece as these iotas may be.

The Troika decided to let the inevitable happen, it seems. Their impossible-to-fulfill conditions offer plausible deniability. Mekel and colleagues can say "afterwards" that they tried everything, but that Greece simply couldn't follow through. And Greek politicians are already planning for the "afterwards" as well. For that hair-raising debacle, read.... Greek Politicians Dive For Cover.

This is secured debt, which means that if every dollar in assets generating one dollar in GDP were to be liquidated and Greece sold off entirely in part or whole to Goldman Sachs et al, there would still be a 36% shortfall to the Troika

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 07:57 AM PST

The Cost Of The Combined Greek Bailout Just Rose To €320 Billion In Secured Debt, Or 136% Of Greek GDP

2 Misguided Assertions About Gold ? Read On Mr. Buffett!

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 07:44 AM PST

In which form would you prefer to hold your monetary savings — in the form of money that banks can create in unlimited amounts out of nothing, or in the form of a metal that has been used as money for thousands of years and whose supply never increases by more than 2% from one year to the next? The answer…isn’t necessarily straightforward [as] a*lot depends on the policies being implemented at the time by central banks and governments [- but let me try.] Words: 1366 So says Steve Saville ([url]www.TheSpeculativeInvestor.com[/url]) in edited excerpts from his original article* which Lorimer Wilson, editor of* www.munKNEE.com (Your Key to Making Money!) and www.FinancialArticleSummariesToday.com (A site for sore eyes and inquisitive minds) has edited ([ ]), abridged (…) and reformatted (some sub-titles and bold/italics emphases) below for the sake of clarity and brevity to ensure a fast and easy read. The article’s views and conclusions are unaltered and no per...


Harvey Organ's Daily Gold & Silver Report

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 06:58 AM PST

Italy and its Debt to GDP/Greece debt problems/USA Debt Problems/Gold and silver raid/


Keiser Report: FBI vs Gold Standard 'Extremists' (E248)

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 06:51 AM PST

discuss the gold standard extremism and how your dollar got to be worth just 3.8 cents, Francine McKenna of reTheAuditors.com...


Sky is the Limit for Gold - John Rubino

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 05:39 AM PST

John Rubino; co-author (with James Turk) of "The...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website http://goldbasics.blogspot.com for full Content ]]


This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Registered Ounces of Silver in the Comex Warehouse

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 05:23 AM PST


This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Gold, Silver, War, Systemic Collapse & Social Unrest: Gerald Celente

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 05:20 AM PST

"It's obvious that the CFTC and the CME Group will do nothing to reign in the crooks in the Comex futures market." [COLOR=#7f4028] Yesterday in Gold and Silver As I mentioned in 'The Wrap' section of yesterday's column, the gold price didn't do much in the Far East on Friday until about fifteen minutes before the London open...and then a not-for-profit seller showed up on the Globex trading system...and had gold down about fifteen bucks in short order. From there it traded sideways to up until about 11:30 a.m. local time in London. Then another seller showed up...and the gold price declined to its low of the day...$1,703.40 spot...with the low occurring about five minutes after the Comex opened in New York. The subsequent $20 rally lasted until about 11:10 a.m. Eastern...with the price topping out around the $1,724 spot mark. After that, the gold price traded more or less sideways for the rest of the New York trading session...although it did get s...


Barley Investing Better Than Gold and Silver?

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 05:04 AM PST

Over the past five years, barley, of the eighteen commodities we follow, was the top performer. Rising by 180+% it bested Gold, +170%, and Silver, +150%. But why quibble? Nearly all commodity prices have done than paper equities. And perhaps they should, as real assets require real work to produce and are essential to the real world.


The Gospel of Gold According to Peter

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 04:43 AM PST

Peter Grandich believes that we're in the midst of a stealth gold bull market. Grandich, editor and publisher of The Grandich Letter, recently penned the book Confessions of a Wall Street Whiz Kid, the moniker "Good Morning America" gave to him after he predicted the Black Monday stock market crash in 1987. He's now predicting gold to top $2,350/oz in this exclusive interview with The Gold Report. The Gold Report: Going back to your time as a fund manager in the '80s on Wall Street, how does what was happening then compare with what is happening now?


Warren Buffett Trashes Gold, But What About Silver?

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 03:42 AM PST

“Gold gets dug out of the ground, then we melt it down, dig another hole, bury it again and pay people to stand around guarding it. It has no utility. Anyone watching from Mars would be scratching their head.”-Warren Buffett


New Up-Cycle for Gold

Posted: 11 Feb 2012 03:35 AM PST

My big-picture analytics of spot gold argue that a 5.5 month cycle low ended -- and a new cycle started -- at the Dec 29 low of $1522.48, after a multi-month correction from the Sep 6 high of $1921.50. The 21% decline concluded an intermediate-term correction within the larger, multi-year bull market in gold.


at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)