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‘Mr. Yen’ cautions on Japan’s ‘unsafe’ debt trajectory

"'A debt ratio of 245pc of GDP is not really safe, and it is not happening because we are investing,' said Takehiko Nakao, Japan's 'Mr Yen' or vice finance minister in charge of the exchange rate. Mr Nakao said the scope for further fiscal stimulus is running out and the country must restore public finances to a sustainable path by the middle of the decade. The comments touch on an acutely sensitive topic. A number of global hedge funds and banks have begun "shorting" Japan's debt, the world's biggest at $23 trillion. They are mostly taking positions through the credit default swap (CDS) market, betting that Japan will be the next big crisis theme." Continue reading →

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Whom to Believe on Gold: Central Banks or Bloomberg?

"Based on current data, the net increase in central bank gold buying for 2012 was 14.8 million troy ounces – and that's before the final 2012 figures are in for all countries. This is a dramatic increase, one bigger than most investors probably realize. To put it in perspective, on a net basis, central banks added more to their reserves last year than since 1964. The net increase – so far – is 17% greater than what was added in 2011, which was itself a year of record buying. Whatever gold's price movements, positive or negative, central bank officials have continued adding a lot of ounces to their reserves." Continue reading →

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Insider buying of gold stocks surges to multi-year highs

"Insiders are typically contrarian investors – buying shares when they perceive them to be undervalued. Right now, it appears many think the stocks are going for fire-sale prices. They are usually early, too. Historically, insider transactions often foreshadow market moves six- to 36-months in advance. While that may be quite a wait, it’s interesting to see insiders display this level of confidence in a sector that the broader investment community has been fleeing." Continue reading →

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Bill Bonner: What a wicked world!

"The insiders risk losing everything if they run out of money. Without money, they can’t buy votes. They can’t continue to move resources to themselves. And they can’t afford their phoney programmes and claptrap redistributions systems either. In short, without access to money everything falls apart. So, a government such as Cyprus will do anything – including stabbing its major industries in the back – in order to keep the cash flowing. Cyprus is a tax haven and a money centre. Clipping bank accounts is ruinous for its business. But if that’s what it takes to stay in business, that’s what the Cypriot insiders will do. Is Britain different? France? America?" Continue reading →

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Thomas Sowell: Can It Happen Here?

"The U.S. government is very unlikely to just seize money wholesale from people's bank accounts, as is being done in Cyprus. But does that mean that your life savings are safe? No. If they do it slowly but steadily, they can take a big chunk of what you have sacrificed for years to save, before you are even aware, much less alarmed. That is in fact already happening. When officials of the Federal Reserve System speak in vague and lofty terms about 'quantitative easing,' what they are talking about is creating more money out of thin air, as the Federal Reserve is authorized to do -- and has been doing in recent years, to the tune of tens of billions of dollars a month." Continue reading →

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After Homicide Ruling, No Charges Against Cops Who Killed Disabled Man In A Movie Theater

"Less than five miles from the theater where a man with Down syndrome died at the hands of the law enforcement officials he idolized, a grand jury on Friday heard the details of the case and decided that no crime had been committed. Grand jury proceedings are secretive in Maryland, but Smith said that his office presented the jury with 17 witness statements and that three deputies involved in the death — Lt. Scott Jewell, Sgt. Rich Rochford and Deputy First Class James Harris — all testified." Continue reading →

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“Stomp on Jesus’ Name or Flunk My Class,” Says Professor. Student Refuses. Gone!

"A student in a class in the academically peripheral Florida Atlantic University was told by the instructor to stomp on the name of Jesus. Do it, or flunk. The student refused. He then protested to the administration. Result: the student has been told not to attend the class, not to talk to other students, and shut up. This has hit the press. Now there will be a huge stink. Some administrative bureaucrat has defended this action. My guess: if the instructor were white, he would not have his contract renewed. But now the administration is caught between a rock and a hard place. Either it gets accused of racism or it gets accused of blatant stupidity. I love it." Continue reading →

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Wuala: Secure Cloud Storage – Backup. Sync. Share. Access Everywhere.

"Wuala is a secure cloud storage, made in Switzerland. As the Swiss knife of cloud storage, it covers all the essential needs for professional and personal use: with Wuala, you can store your files securely online, share them with select others, access them from anywhere, setup automatic backups of your local data, or synchronize whole folders to the cloud. Wuala employs client-side-encryption to achieve a unique level of security. All data is encrypted locally, before it is uploaded. Your password never leaves your computer. Nobody - not even we as storage provider - can access your data without your authorization." Continue reading →

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Are You A Good Candidate For Expatriation?

"I’ve discovered the motivations for our expatriation clients to take this step are more nuanced than mere tax avoidance. A case in point is the overwhelming compliance burden U.S. taxpayers living overseas face. The information reporting regime they face is complex, overlapping, and constantly evolving. Even minor violations are subject to draconian penalties. What’s more, U.S. laws force foreign banks and other financial institutions to enforce U.S. tax and reporting rules with respect to their U.S. clients. In many cases, it’s easier for foreign banks to 'fire' U.S. clients than deal with this risk." Continue reading →

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