Kunst

Time for the U.S. Economy to Reindustrialize

You don't create manufacturing out of nothing. As long as American workers are overpriced and undereducated, it isn't going to happen.

Insiders Continue to Sell, Sell, Sell

Give up, Think, it's a lost cause. They don't know, and more important, they don't care.


On Aug 14 07:11 AM Think wrote:
> on a more serious note...when did everyone decide to start typing "an" instead of "a" in every instance? "An" should only be used before words that begin with a vowel sounding first syllable such as "an apple" or "an hour (here the 'h' is silent giving a vowel sounding syllable)," whereas "a" should be used before consonant sounding syllables such as "a horse" or "A GRAPHIC." Not trying to be an ass I just see it all the time and it bugs the hell out of me.

Why This Rally Is Unsustainable

The Dow was up 0.54% yesterday (5/1/09). That's a 194% annual rate of gain.

Between 10:22 and 11:25 AM, it was up 1.10%. That's a 130,827% annual rate of gain!

Between 1:35 and 1:40 PM....well, you get the idea. I hope.


On May 02 12:01 AM mwfall wrote:

> that's would be a 43% annual rate of gain.


On May 01 02:07 PM Naufal Sanaullah wrote:

> Market is up about 2.5% since April 9.

Cramer's Stop Trading! This Is One of the Greatest Rallies in History (3/27/09)

Isn't it great that Cramer has a crystal ball that can foretell the future? Too bad he just found it.

The End of the Credit Crisis

Actually, they just changed the law so that mortgage forgiveness (foreclosure, short sale) is not taxable.


On Feb 28 02:31 AM sr9web wrote:

> Write downs only are taxable to borrowers on forgiven loans.

Bank of America Continues to Stand Strong

That's what a lot of Enron employees thought. They were very loyal too. Advice: diversify.


On Feb 22 11:07 AM Jennifer Pritchard wrote:

> I agree with you on all of the above reasons. I work for BAC too
> in the CD/IRA department Call Center here in KS. Right now is a
> great time to buy BAC stock. I am buying as much as I can while it
> is low because I know it will be well worth in within the long term.

Recent Policy Decisions and a Greater Depression

Seems like all you ever do is talk about how great you are. Boring!


On Feb 20 08:25 AM Ferdinand E. Banks wrote:

> Although I'm one of the best economics teachers in the world, I quit
> teaching macroeconomics because I lost my faith in it. I kept my
> macro books however. I think though that I will throw those books
> out into the snow, because if someone who knows the terminology comes
> to the conclusions of Mr Kee, then I don't want to be tempted to
> ever stand in front of a macro class again.,

Eight Reasons Bank of America Is Going to $20

seekingalpha.com/artic...

I called him an idiot on this. I was wrong. He may be wrong this time, or maybe not.


On Feb 20 05:29 PM JKC1967 wrote:

> One thing about this writer Jason Schwartz: In summer of 2008 when
> oil was still above $100 and the news was totally "demise of the
> dollar," Jason wrote an article here on SA essentially saying "Oil
> is Going to $30 and Dollar to Strengthen Dramatically" (or something
> like that). He said he was Long USO and UUP. Of course, about 50
> people jumped in and ripped him to shreds, but I guess Jason kind
> of got the last laugh on that one! Point is, every once in awhile,
> a good contrarian analysis can help us see things from a different
> perspective. I have no idea if Jason is correct in his BAC comments
> here, but I hope he keeps writing to express out of the box views.

Russell 3000 Stock Performance YTD

I like facts. You have a problem with facts? Personally, I do my own thinking.


On Feb 13 04:09 PM jeandit75 wrote:

> Actually, you guys only add facts. Don't you have a view on the markeet?

Six Key Quotes From U.S. Bancorp's Q408 Conference Call

I appreciate these summaries of key points. I read a few transcripts of particular interest to me, but there is so much more out there it would be good to know. Thanks for the help.

John Thain Called Out by the President

Why do banking (or any other) executives get bonuses when their company loses money? No profit, no bonuses, top to bottom.

How Do You Recapitalize $1.8 Trillion in Bank Loan Losses?

Amazing, just amazing.


On Jan 22 03:20 PM Socialism cannot compete! wrote:

> At least we're getting something for the Iraq war! There's a fledgling
> democracy in the middle east, where private citizens are now starting
> business and women can now go to school.

How Do You Recapitalize $1.8 Trillion in Bank Loan Losses?

Oh no, that war will be over in no time and will cost a small fraction of that. Besides, other countries will pay for part of it. By the time Iraq's oil gets factored in, we'll probably make a profit. Don't you remember?


On Jan 22 02:25 PM raytayzmd wrote:

> ...oh, wow, 1.8 trillion in losses!...why, that's almost as much
> as what the Iraq war will end up costing us!...funny, I don't recall
> anyone getting sqeamish when THOSE estimates were being tossed around
> 6-7 years ago...

Financials Bring Down the Market, Again; Hoping for an Obama Bounce

Thumbs up to Jegan!

Divisiveness has been Republican party policy since at least 1994. That garbage has overstayed its welcome.

Another former Republican who hopes Obama will be successful in bring this country TOGETHER.


On Jan 19 06:03 PM jegan ;-) wrote:

> You mean 'Those socialist comunist democrats " like George Bush,
> Carl Rove, Paulson, Bernanke, Jaime Dimond, Rick Wagoner....etc..
> etc... This kind of B.S. reminds me of Hitler's attempt at producing
> a true Arayan race of tall blonds, while he was of course short
> and dark haired. By the way, communist has two 'm's'....
>
> At 60 years old, and a lifelong Republican, I voted for Obama. I
> don;t have to be slapped up against the side of my head again to
> realize that the GOP has nothing to do with being a Republican. They
> have become a 'Bible-thumping, froth-at-the-mouth bunch of whiney
> bull-sh*t. artists.' Anyone that would propose or vote for 'Dubya',
> an incoherent, dried out alcoholic with a 'Joan of Arc' complex,
> shouldn't be allowed to vote.
>
> jegan

The Danger in Financial Stocks in 2009

SKF should have been a great buy in a year when many financial stocks dropped 90% in value. But if you bought it a year ago and held it to today, you would be DOWN 5%. Unbelievable but true. The geometric compounding and internal inefficiencies of the ProShares ultras and especially ultrashorts make them unsuitable for anything but very short-term bets on market or segment direction.

Examples, previously posted on other SA articles:

Examples, 1/1-12/29/08:
China: FXI and FXP are both down 50%.
Oil industry: DUG and DIG are BOTH down, 25% and 75% respectively.
Financials: UYG is down 85%, SKF is up 25%.
Real estate: URE is down 80%, SRS is DOWN 45%.

DOG (ProShares 1x short Dow 30) is up 20%, DXD (same except 2x) is only up 15%. The single-leverage did better than the double!

These are not suitable vehicles for long-term trend bets. You can chart pairs and watch their cumulative intersection points sink farther and farther below 0%, even in 5 or 10 day charts. These ETFs are dangerous. Handle with care, if at all.

***
Here's another one for you. Pull up a 3-month chart of FXI (1x long China) vs. FXP (2x short China). FXI is down about 3%. So you would expect FXP to be up, right? Wrong. FXP is DOWN about 68%.

This is Russian roulette with 5 out of 6 chambers loaded.