CLibertyC

Echoes of the bubble in agents’ descriptions of real estate markets

"Astonishingly low mortgage rates, which the Federal Reserve has driven down in the hopes of stimulating borrowing and goosing the economy, have given qualified purchasers more buying power. A 1 percent decline in mortgage rates increases buying power by about 10 percent. Even though agents might worry about overvalued homes, that's not stopping buyers from bidding up prices, a phenomenon happening in markets with tight inventories across the U.S. Maxwell Rabin, an agent at TTR Sotheby's International Realty, said the Washington, D.C. market is experiencing 'very, very high demand and almost historically low supply.'" Continue reading →

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Bill Bonner: Is this the end for the bull market in gold?

"Is this the end for the bull market in gold? Everybody says so. And this was before gold tumbled on Friday. The fact is, the masses never got anywhere near gold. Not even close. Most people have never seen a gold coin....and few are as reckless as the aforementioned Mr. Norstog. Most are even more reckless! They'll wait gold to hit $2,000...or $3,000 before they buy. Which is why we're nowhere close to the top. Wall Street never marketed gold, deftly...or any other way. Not even in its usual greedy, heavy handed fashion. And the masses never bought it. Just the opposite. As the price of gold rose we saw ads in the paper soliciting people to SELL gold." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBill Bonner: Is this the end for the bull market in gold?

Iron Age burial site points to long-lost glories of Gaul

"During this time, the Celts expanded from their core territory in central Europe to as far afield as northern Scotland and the Atlantic coast of Spain. They clashed with the emerging Roman empire, whose writers recorded the invaders as pale-skinned savages, dressed in breeches with bleached hair, who cut off their enemies’ heads, preserving those of high rank in cedar oil. The barbarian image, though, has been dispelled by historical research in recent decades. It has laid bare a complex civilisation that had a mastery of metal and a trading system which spanned Europe and generated great wealth." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIron Age burial site points to long-lost glories of Gaul

John Browne Explains the Great Game

"Of countries that have to make something, like the Swiss – the Swiss have got a heap of granite with icing on the top of it and yet they're one of the richest countries in the world. It's the people that do this stuff. It's the people and the leadership and if they believe in something they do it, and the Germans, too. They believe in hard work but what's more, they believe that the hard work of today's citizens should be kept intact so that those hard working people, when they retire, should be able to enjoy the fruits of their labor. The Anglo-Americans say the hell with the future, the hell with children, the hell with grandchildren. We want that money now." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJohn Browne Explains the Great Game

Supreme Court refuses to take up challenge against New York public gun law

"The Supreme Court declined on Monday to discuss a challenge to a New York state law requiring prospective gun owners to demonstrate they need to defend themselves before getting a concealed-carry license for a handgun. The New York Times reported that the court’s decision effectively backs a ruling by the federal Court of Appeals for New York upholding the law. New York state attorney general Eric Schneiderman filed a brief to the high court arguing that the New York law, similar to measures in at least seven other states, operated in accordance with the Second Amendment." Continue reading →

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Destroying the middle ground

"Imagine yourself in an alternate United States where the First Amendment is not as a matter of settled law considered to bar Federal and State governments from almost all interference in free speech. In this alternate America, there are many and bitter arguments about the extent of free-speech rights. The ground of dispute is to what extent the instruments of political and cultural speech (printing presses, radios, telephones, copying machines, computers) should be regulated by government so that use of these instruments does not promote violence, assist criminal enterprises, and disrupt public order." Continue reading →

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The Google Executive Chairman on Private Drones vs. Government Armed Drones

"'You're having a dispute with your neighbor. How would you feel if your neighbor went over and bought a commercial observation drone that they can launch from their backyard. It just flies over your house all day. How would you feel about it?' Schmidt went on to bring up military and terrorist concerns. 'I'm not going to pass judgment on whether armies should exist, but I would prefer to not spread and democratize the ability to fight war to every single human being. It's got to be regulated... It's one thing for governments, who have some legitimacy in what they're doing, but have other people doing it... it's not going to happen.'" Continue reading →

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Maryland ‘rain tax’ to be enforced through satellite surveillance?

"The tax, officially known as a 'storm water management fee,' will be enforced in nine of the state's counties. Former 2012 GOP U.S. Senate candidate Dan Bongino bashes the tax in a Wednesday afternoon press release. The law 'requires individuals, businesses, and even charitable organizations and houses of worship to pay a tax based on the amount of rain that falls on their property and the 'impervious surfaces' on their land,' he says. The tax, mandated by the EPA and enforced locally, will be calculated 'through satellite surveillance of your property,' the statement claims." Continue reading →

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JFK passenger detained by TSA after talking about ‘bomb’ sandwich

"Airport officials detained a traveler who mentioned an explosive device at JFK — only to discover he was actually talking about food referred to as The Bomb, TSA sources said. Jason Michael Cruz, 29, was on an escalator in Terminal 7 Thursday when a TSA officer overheard him tell a friend he 'had the wrong kind of bomb' just after 1 p.m. Officials ushered Cruz and his friend, Matthew Okumoto, to a holding area, where they learned the pair was talking about a sandwich called The Bomb, airport officials said. TSA officers held the pair until airport cops arrived, causing Cruz to miss his Los Angeles-bound flight." Continue reading →

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Where did your tax dollars go?

Via Heritage: Too much taxing and spending is bad for the nation. Americans are right to be concerned about how the President and Congress allocate their hard-earned money. As the above infographic shows, 45 percent or almost half of all spending went toward paying for Social Security and health care entitlements. Without reforming these massive […]

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