The Rise of RFID ‘Smart Guns’
"RFID-based smart guns that can be remotely turned off at any time are set to hit US markets in the next several months, and could be used a 'loophole' to bypass the Second Amendment." Continue reading →
"RFID-based smart guns that can be remotely turned off at any time are set to hit US markets in the next several months, and could be used a 'loophole' to bypass the Second Amendment." Continue reading →
"The government's financial regulator alleges that Shavers violated a number of federal financial regulations. In court documents, the SEC wrote: 'Shavers falsely promised investors up to 7 percent interest weekly based on BTCST’s purported BTC market arbitrage activity, including selling BTC to individuals who wished to buy BTC 'off the radar,' quickly, or in large quantities. In reality, the BTCST offering was a sham and a Ponzi scheme whereby Shavers used new BTCST investors’ BTC to pay the promised returns on outstanding BTCST investments and misappropriated BTCST investors’ [bitcoins] for his personal use.'" Continue reading →
"When US restaurant delivery network Foodler began accepting bitcoin paymentsin April, it formed a natural combination for programmers: code and steaming boxes of delivered food. So it makes perfect sense that Foodler co-founder Christian Dumontet set up the interface to make Foodler bitcoin-friendly during a few late nights of delivery-fueled coding. In that week, Boston-based Foodler transformed the art of dining on bitcoin from an adventure to a few swipes of a smartphone screen and an exercise in patiently waiting for the doorbell. Bitcoin users have been eating it up." Continue reading →
"Israelis can now purchase bitcoins at their local exchange bureau thanks to a new collaboration between bitcoin exchange Bits of Gold and Global Money Transfer (GMT). The partnership with GMT means Bits of Gold can ensure it complies with current and future anti-money-laundering and know-your-customer regulations in Israel. At the moment, the maximum amount of cash people can change into bitcoins via Bits of Gold is 10,000 Israeli new shekel (around $2,800)." Continue reading →
"Precious metals purveyor Amagi Metals announced on Friday that as of mid-August, their current bank account with San Francisco headquartered Bank of the West would be closed. In the latest case of banking aversion to bitcoin, Amagi Metals stated that the basis for the account closure is the fact that Amagi Metals accepts bitcoin as a payment method, which Bank of the West views as a risk. While it is the prerogative of a bank to choose not to do business any entity based on a risk assessment, a decision to cut off a customer based on the fact that they accept a specific method of payment is unusual." Continue reading →
"Gold is not a stock. It does not behave as a stock, and its rewards are not delivered in the manner of stocks. In watching the ups and downs of gold, this is the most important fact to remember. To be sure, some investors treat gold in the same way as a stock – trying to guess its fluctuations – selling after a rise and buying following a correction. However, gold is not like a stock, in that it does not pay dividends. It does not rise and fall based upon the performance of any company. And it is relatively finite. There can be no stock splits. Gold's true value is not as a trading commodity, but as a means to preserve wealth." Continue reading →
"Philadelphia isn’t the only community experimenting with this idea. Other areas, like the Berkshire area of Massachusetts, have a similar currency (theirs is called BerkShares, not to be confused with Buffett’s Berkshire). The exchange of Equal Dollars is a $2.5 million operation, according to RHD. BerkShares claims that it circulated over one million BerkShares circulated in the first nine months of operation and over 2.7 million to date (roughly pegged at $.95 U.S. per BerkShare). Ithaca HOURS, touted as the oldest local currency in the country, currently has over $100,000 in circulation." Continue reading →
"If I were chairman of the Federal Reserve and didn't understand the forces that move gold, learning about them would be near the top of my to-do list, if for no other reason than a large swath of the investment community uses gold as a barometer to evaluate how good a job I'm doing. Bernanke's clueless quote paints a stark contrast between the academic and real world. Upon observing the recent correction in the price of gold, how many asset managers do you think threw their hands up in confusion and proclaimed that no one can possibly know what's going on, so why even try?" Continue reading →
"Interest rates will remain at low levels for a very, very long time. The Fed will remove the stimulus in baby steps because it has no other choice. Any significant moves would send world markets into a tailspin. When the money printing finally stops, the Fed will still keep interest rates at zero for a while, just to make sure the economy can stand on its own feet. Only then – and if everything goes well – will the Fed slowly begin to hike rates. Most bubbles burst when the Fed starts to move rates above the inflation rate. As you can see in the chart above, that’s what happened in 2006. But, the Fed will only do that when inflation starts to get out of control." Continue reading →
"Brazil’s street protests grew out of a popular campaign against bus fare increases. Renting an apartment in coveted areas of Rio has become more expensive than in Oslo, the capital of oil-rich Norway. Soaring prices for basic foods like tomatoes prompted parodies of President Dilma Rousseff and her economic advisers. Inflation stands at about 6.4 percent, with many in the middle class complaining that they are bearing the brunt of price increases. Companies grapple with 88 federal, state and municipal taxes, a number of which are charged directly to consumers. The Brazilian authorities issue an estimated 46 new tax rules every day." Continue reading →