Friday, March 2, 2012

Friday Funnies

"Over the past several decades, we have witnessed numerous examples of serious lawbreaking on the part of our most powerful political and financial leaders with no consequences of any kind. ..[T]he current consensus among journalists and politicians is that...criminal prosecutions are simply not appropriate for the country's elites" (Gerald Greenwald, "With Liberty and Justice For Some").
I don't know if I should laugh or cry when I read this.  Quite frankly, for as incompetent and corrupt as Tim Geithner is, Eric Holder makes Geithner look like an amateur.  I thought W's Attorney General's were sleazy and corrupt, but Holder makes them look like monks.  Holder gave a speech today at Columbia in which he defended his track record at fighting finanicial fraud: 
Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. defended the Justice Department’s record on financial fraud Thursday evening, asserting that the administration’s “record of success has been nothing less than historic.”  LINK
MF Global, Robosigning, Solyndra,  massive mortgage fraud, market manipulation, ad nauseum...Eric Holder not only qualifies for Friday Funnies, he qualifies as Clown of the Year candidate.

24 comments:

  1. "Historic"?

    Yes, does he mean good history, or BAD!!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Literally taken, Holder's statement is accurate on the facts: Zero success in prosecutions is indeed historic. Look no further than the 1100 executives jailed after the S&L crisis.

    Bushama and Oromney have restored the Divine Right of Kings.

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  3. Clown of the year declared March 2nd? I am sure we will have plenty of opportunities to find a bigger one before the end of the year.

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  4. Dave, I think the only guy that was prosecuted was the guy that confessed -- Bernie Madoff.

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  5. one for all and all for one...too bad for the masses

    Brass Tacks & The Giant Sucking Sound

    We have wrecked the country (the United States) with a series of deals. We have destabilized the whole world based on a series of lies and bubbles.. Now we will become an energy exporter. However, our prospects for job creation are grim given the structure of our country (The United States). The same few elite get rewarded as the majority are locked into a destabilized and destitute existence.

    http://youtu.be/M3uEa_hr344

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  6. the ECB may be protecting the bank’s sellers of CDS ?


    In an article provided by the French financial magazine La Tribune, Eugene Stiglitz, Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences (2001), suggests that the Greeks have already defaulted on certain payments and accuse the ECB of not being transparent about these events.
    Click here to view the article…
    (This article cannot be found in English)

    He also suggests that the ECB may be protecting the bank’s sellers of CDS and mentions a possible conspiracy between the banks, the ECB and, what he called the "secret committee", the ISDA.

    He concludes that, by definition, CDS on sovereign debts become worthless. And questions who will buy new CDS on Portugal, Spain, Belgium an Italy?

    In my opinion, this means a big loss of future revenue and source of profit for the main sellers of CDS (US banks) and, as there is no protection anymore, a complete stop of sovereign debt buying by the private sector (banks, hedge funds….). I believe that is why today there is a news that China won’t let Europe fail.

    http://www.jsmineset.com/2012/03/03/jims-mailbox-875/

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  7. Andy did a good job....

    Ellis Martin Report with Miles Franklin’s Andy Hoffman


    http://sgtreport.com/2012/03/ellis-martin-report-with-miles-franklins-andy-hoffman/

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  8. Corzine and MF Global Crimes to Go Unpunished – Episode 166
    Surprise surprise, John Corzine, global elitist financier and flim-flam man will not be prosecuted for his role in the MF Global theft and fraud. It seems that the US Attorneys involved just can’t figure out if any crime was committed. There’s so much paper work for them to review and it’s just too hard. Never mind bringing the entire senior executive ranks before a grand jury to squeeze the truth out of them. Never mind the fact that CME Chief Terry Duffy, the head of a national exchange, testified before Congress that he was told that Corzine was aware that customer funds were being siphoned off to pay off MF Global bets that went South.

    Obviously the competence level of all government employees has eroded to the point where they can’t prosecute a crime, even when it’s handed to them gift-wrapped. And don’t expect this matter to be resolved in civil suits either. Most of them will be handled by the Bankruptcy Court Judge and will probably be tossed. So what we have here is another connected insider getting a free pass from the government and the Justice Department. When the history of the early 21st century is written, this incident will be referred as a tipping point, when confidence in both the financial system and the government disintegrated.

    http://sgtreport.com/2012/03/triple-lutz-report-%E2%80%93-corzine-and-mf-global-crimes-to-go-unpunished-%E2%80%93-episode-166/

    MF Global: What Happened to the Money - 'Well, This Is Not a Boat Accident'

    http://jessescrossroadscafe.blogspot.com/2012/03/mf-global-what-happened-to-money-money.html

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  9. Soc Gen: LIBOR dispersion surging post-LTRO, funding conditions “may not be as healthy as they seem”

    And just in case there are any remaining notions that there isn’t much risk of a spillover effect into, for example, U.S. markets, look at what the dispersion in USD LIBOR is doing:

    http://www.dailycollateral.com/2012/03/04/soc-gen-libor-dispersion-surging-post-ltro-funding-conditions-may-not-be-as-healthy-as-they-seem/

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  10. Listen..recycling American debt into Israel into stocks...

    Interview with Canadian Financial Radio


    http://www.deanlebaron.com/article/latest-interview-with-canadian-financial-radio/

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  11. Alasdair Macleod: Where is Greece's gold?

    "As central bankers mull the point over, they may well conclude that among all their troubles there is one more that must be avoided at all costs: the possibility of a gold run by the smaller central banks on their larger peers in the major bullion trading centers. It would be a consequence of the deepening crisis involving fiat money and credit, and if this is allowed to occur, all confidence in paper money itself would be at risk."

    Macleod's commentary is titled "Where Is Greece's Gold?" and it's posted at GoldMoney here:

    http://www.gata.org/node/11067

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  12. Why Warren Buffett hates gold?

    Max interviews Ned Naylor Leyland from Cheviot Asset Management.

    http://youtu.be/6t8OhRD2Mfw

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  13. Yes warren buffett hates gold, but he knows that the elite are using it right now, and laughing at us for using the paper based currency.

    Go listen to the guys from http://www.forecastfortomorrow.com they tell the truth, and are eerily accurate. Their latest newsletter is quite startling if you are ready for the truth, and not the same Govt BS day in and day out.

    I am getting worried for my kids, the way the economy is right now.

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  14. Oliver Stone and author and filmmaker Tariq

    Ali Filmmaker Oliver Stone and author and filmmaker Tariq Ali present their thoughts on the politics of history and what they consider to be hidden aspects of American history. Their discussion ranges across several topics,from American involvement against the Russian Revolution to a profile of the labor union, the Industrial Workers of the World. OliverStone andTariq Ali speak at the New YorkPublic Library in New YorkCity.



    http://c-spanvideo.org/event/201064&timeline


    http://c-spanvideo.org/program/AliO&showFullAbstract=1

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  15. This whole precious metal tin foil hat community - apparently everyone is now manipulating the prices - China too. So why even get into it. Safe haven - you boys must be nuts. Everyone talking their book and they can't get it up. We are consistently relying on the "manipulators" to give us a crumb for the gold to go up.

    Now the miners are not even holding and breaking down from a big triangle. So all these people still using the term "explode" and listening to someone saying now silver needs to go to 500. Please.

    This community I don't want to be part of - you all are just traders. Even Got Gold Report. It is absolutely nuts to stay invested for the long term.

    Now the GDX is below 54 again.

    If this Wednesday thing was a manipulation - then why cant' Gold actually just keep it at one spot.

    The Barron's mining index hasn't gone anywhere for 30years. And can't show any strength. Manipulated up for about two day and for the rest down. Add up the daily volume in red and see the greens. The greens are so few and far between the red volume columns.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. keep your $ in bonds then.

      Delete
    2. give it time to load...talks about legal/illegal shorts


      2012 CIGA Meeting Webcast Now Available

      http://www.jsmineset.com/2012/03/05/2012-ciga-meeting-webcast-now-available/

      Delete
    3. No my friend not bonds. If u care to look since 2008 it has been best in dividend companies , ie normal old school.

      have u seen where the gdx is again, and have u looked at the trend over a year. now it can't even break 58.

      absolutely everyone now claims manipulation. pathetic. with the eu , japan, boe all having increased their "qe" and spain going now and all this physical buying last year and gold miners can't get any traction.

      live in your dreams.

      the power is elsewhere. you need to follow the power.

      Delete
    4. yes the power of default....keep believing...

      ounces in the ground=money!

      Greek 1-Year Bond Yield Hits 1,006%
      That yield reflects the idea that 1-year bonds will be nearly worthless before the month is over.

      http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2012/03/greek-1-year-bond-yield-hits-1006.html

      Delete
  16. and by the way - even jesse mentioned last that silver shorts will get burnt. how naive. the shorts have access to the rules of the game and the power to change them. they have used those to full effect already.

    and the fall of page. the n the knew silver contract as mentioned by ned and andrew - did you notice in the turd interview how pathetically naive those shareholders were - trying to establish that page and walking into the lbma and telling them what they were starting.

    silver bag holders.

    ReplyDelete
  17. On manipulation-
    The London Gold Pool was successful at suppressing the price of gold-until one day it failed.
    The US Goverment was successful at supressing the price of silver at $1.29 per ounce-until demand swamped supply.
    Manipulation works until one day it doesn't, and the fact that I bought,gold at $700 per oz and silver at $5-$10 per ounce means I can shrug as the price of both metals fluctuate.
    Kitco.com has historical data concerning gold and silver prices, for a decade at least the,price of,both metals have gone up yearly. Ignore the daily or weekly prices, annual gains should be your main concern.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Ounces in the ground. Don't be ......

    What with peak energy??

    Look at where the HUI, XAU etc is again - and you think the juniors will when the GDX can't even move. It is capped lower and lower.

    Then the expected correction in the main markets still coming.

    This precious metal market is for a good trade and most are getting fleeced.

    Gold a safe haven. Tell me another one.

    How on earth can people like Turk etc say the move to the moon is imminnet.

    Credibility is gone and the market feel has changed more than you would care to admit. This isn't a normal correction and weakness to get a move going.

    I bet you all would have been better of just investing in the 2008 low in the normal stocks, Dow and S&P.

    Silver is the Nasdaq all over

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. stockman - pain and carnage will be unimaginab​le


      Stockman suggests you’d be a fool to hold anything but cash now, and maybe a few bars of gold. He thinks the Federal Reserve’s efforts to ease the pain from the collapse of our “national leveraged buyout” — his term for decades of reckless, debt-fueled spending by government, families and companies — is pumping stock and bond markets to dangerous heights.

      http://lubbockonline.com/business/2012-03-03/why-david-stockman-isnt-buying-it#.T1TCO8wWV3U


      Below are excerpts, edited for clarity.

      Q: Why are you so down on the U.S. economy?

      A: It’s become super-saturated with debt.


      Q: And what are the consequences of that?

      A: The consequences are horrendous. If you could make the world rich by having all the central banks print unlimited money, then we have been making a mistake for the last several thousand years of human history.

      Q: How does it end?

      A: At some point confidence is lost, and people don’t want to own the (Treasury) paper. I mean why in the world, when the inflation rate has been 2.5 percent for the last 15 years, would you want to own a five-year note today at 80 basis points (0.8 percent)?

      If the central banks ever stop buying, or actually begin to reduce their totally bloated, abnormal, freakishly large balance sheets, all of these speculators are going to sell their bonds in a heartbeat.

      That’s what happened in Greece.

      Delete