Robert Nabloid

http://www.nabloid.com

• 8 High-Yielding Stocks for Income Investors [view article]

  Sorry NYKA. I didn't re-read it to correct mistakes and I know I make plenty of grammatical errors when it's late. That's what happens when you work an 11 hour shift, come home and throw up an article real quick (I type 100+ wpm, so I can type an article almost as fast as I can talk). Regardless, the content is either valid or it isn't. I'm not being paid and I'm not expecting to win any journalist awards. We're playing a numbers game here.
  
  BTW, those 8 stocks aren't actual recommendations - just a quick glance to show readers that high yielding stocks do exist. I wouldn't personally want to own some of those since there are better ones out there.
  
  I forgot to write that I don't blindly chase yields. I always check to see a stable company with profits, growth and steady dividend increases and a healthy balance sheet (I hate a company with too much debt). I've stayed away from the mortgage income trusts. I do like some REITs (especially some Canadian ones).
  
  And no, there will be no more "halloween canroy news" that can drop them by 30%, because they are already slated for destruction and that is factored into the price. Destroying the Income Trust Industry was the worst case scenario and it occured and the result was a 30% drop. Alberta just raised the royalty rates on oil and gas and won't be raising it any further (though that was bad news and set prices back a bit too - seems like a few years of bad news for the Canadian side of things if you count the USD being so weak and the fact that Oil is quoted in USD... Sure oil went up, but not by much in CND$).
  
  We don't know what many of these Income Trust Companies will look like when they switch to a traditional corporate structure - will they continue their high dividends? Or will some switch strategies and issue smaller dividends? We don't know and that means there is an element of risk with many of the Canadian Income Trusts (except REITs).
  
  Also note that I did not know the U.S. Government treats PGH like a partnership. I guess I'm lucky we don't.
  
  Invest in what you know and feel comfortable with. Mar 20 11:07 PM

• Yahoo Can Grow Faster Than Google [view article]

  Nice call kms! Feb 12 02:10 AM

• AeroGrow Invents New Industry, Continues Sprouting [view article]

  I actually have the stainless steel pro 100 aerogarden and it has worked well so far. I have not yet seen the Aerogarden 3, but I'll go check that out... Feb 12 02:04 AM

• Some People Just Don't See the Recession [view article]

  I just re-read my last paragraph and think I didn't explain myself very well. By pro-capitalism, I simply meant I'm more of a Austrian School of Economics style of laissez-faire capitalist. - In other words, no interference. I don't want companies getting large grants and getting bailed out every time they do something stupid. Leave the corporations alone, PERIOD. Capitalism does just fine without all the stupid bail-outs for dumb mistakes. If the corporation fails, it fails - just as when a person fails and goes bankrupt, they go bankrupt. The corporations that are being run sustainably and intelligently will prosper, and the ones with bad management will suffer, as they should. Let's the corporations and citizens be held accountable for their actions.
  
  The whole sub-prime mess is partly related to the fact that the large banks know the government will bail them out if they get into trouble. How wrong it is that that they conduct business knowing such information, but its true! They then go ahead and try and get take on risky and fraudulent loans so everyone can buy an expensive home (even if they can't afford it) and it ends up hurting the individuals, in order to try and make the corporation some extra profit. Then it backfires and the government must bail out the corporation or risk the banking system having massive problems and the potential layoff of millions of employees. Now they talk about bailing people out too. The way government interferes with one group ends up affecting the other. Sometimes the bail-outs are to protect the employees so they don't lose jobs. It's still wrong.
  
  The entire reason corporations exist is for liability reasons related to the risks corporations often must take to conduct business. They exist to provide a separate legal entity for which you can put some money in and conduct business - and if things go bad and the company is bankrupted, the owners of the company don't end up losing all their personal belongings as well. They only lose what money they have risked to conduct the business operations. I don't think the government should bail them out at all, EVER. Corporations have a legal status that provides some safety net against the risks they take to operate, and that should be enough. But in order to help save jobs, government interferes. Sometimes the interference and bail-outs they give corporations are to try and help both the company and the employees, but it shouldn't be done PERIOD.
  
  I'm pro-capitalism, but I'm from a different school of economic thought and I'm not a fan of Keynesian economics as it leads to massive overspending in the government and stupid bail-outs like we've so often witnessed. I do truly understand what you meant by pro-business stance that government often takes. I don't like it. I also don't like the anti-business stance many others must take in order to balance the issues... I think it should be NEITHER, not one or the other as most people seem to think it is. It should be NEITHER! Let the people be. Jan 27 03:26 PM

• Some People Just Don't See the Recession [view article]

  Thanks for the comment bergl328! I need intelligent feedback like yours more often, even when slightly critical. I'll reply to your comment:
  
  "Wouldn't a capitalist welcome the "Cintras' " of the world? Or does it just bother you that it's happening here in the US now?"
  
  Well, I don't like selling highways that are already paid for by the government to private foreign owned corporations that then put tolls on them. I realize taxes are used to pay for maintenance, but now the road costs citizens MORE due to the profits that Cintras will require it generate. I do not think selling basic infrastructure of any country is a good idea... In fact, I think its governments job to provide basic infrastructure for a country. The fact that legislation is introduced so that no other highways can compete with theirs is where it begins to cross the line. I also realize that my taxes won't be lowered due to the government no longer having to maintain that particular highway, but now I'll have to pay extra to Cintras to travel it - In short, it feels like a roundabout way of increasing taxes and selling off the basic infrastructure system - I don't like it when a foreign country or government can buy and control America's infrastructure. I don't like it when America goes out and buys or controls foreign infrastructure either. Even a capitalist like me sees some uses for government.
  
  "The US has used the World Bank to put many countries into the same position that we are now facing ourselves. We loaned money knowing it couldn't be payed back and the told those same countries to take the bitter pill and reduce government size, become fiscally responsible and to sell of their infrastructure too reduce costs. Corporations of the World Bank participants then went in and bought up the water companies, utility companies, etc, at a fraction of it's value and then proceeded to raise prices on those that could barely afford to pay them to begin with. (And conservatives wonder why no one likes the US anymore.) "
  
  - I agree completely with you. I don't like what we've done to the rest of the world either. With our "economic hit men" (Seriously, go read confessions of an economic hit man! Great book that talks about those issues in great detail.), it should be quite clear we have interfered with many other nations - I agree with Ron Paul on this issue and think we should be friends and trading partners with all, but refrain from interfering like we have in the past. We are only creating potential enemies.
  
  "I'd love to have no or low personal income tax, but I don't see it happening. It's our tax dollars that the World bank uses (at least 51% is) and it's companies that profit. Companies make poor business decisons, assume more risk than prudent to bolster profits only because they know there will be no consequences for them - the government, using out tax dollars will bail them out and, while we're at it. let's just give them another $50B so they don't have to spend any company money. How often have we seen this scenario - Automotive industry, Aircraft industry, Savings and Loans, Insurance, Banks, Brokerages and on and on. The companies get more incentives, more tax breaks, more favorable legislation and the individual tax payer bears the burden in higher taxes and prices. "
  
  -I agree with you, this is wrong. Government interference in matters such as these are wrong. I'm against ANY government interference, whether pro-business or anti-business - I think government should not interfere AT ALL. They should not bail out corporations, just as they should not bail out people. People and corporations need to be held accountable for their actions. Ron Paul would eliminate many of the bureaucracy's that are in place and would go back to having no income tax... Remember, Income Tax is actually quite new and we survived for many years without it.
  
  "Each time we go through one of theses messes more beauracracy gets established to deal with it and the companies wind up in better shape and the individual in less. I realize that there are complex interrelationships here, but the only way to ensure that this doesn't keep happening over and over again is to not bail the companies out with tax payer dollars. If they fail they fail. Shareholders should be able to sue the respective corporate boards and leadership for mismanagement and I think. they would, in future, think twice about the companies that they invest in. "
  
  -That's a huge problem! I agree with you, and think government has become way too bloated due to this process. I prefer Ron Paul's way of dealing with this. Get rid of many of the government departments altogether.
  
  "Take a look at the playing field and I think you will agree that it is strongly skewed in favor of business. If you agree with that perspective then I believe you'll gain a better understanding of the whole. "
  
  -I completely understand what you're saying! I don't think it should be skewed in favor of business. However, I think its always about the pro-business or pro-citizen stance... government should be neither. It seems like one day government does things to bail our corporations and hurt individuals - and the next day someone in government is trying to bail out individuals and hurt corporations. It should be NEITHER!!!!! No bailing out, no favors, just stop inteferring at all. Besides, corporations and businesses ARE controlled and owned by people... Corporations and Businesses ARE people - just hiding behind the corporate veil. Either way you cut it, the government is bailing out people - it just seems to be bailing out the rich people for taking on massive risks which usually, in the end hurt many citizens. It should be neither pro- or anti-business. Both are equally bad. In short, when I talk about no interference, I mean NO interference for bailing people or corporations out. We need more accountability in this country. That's what I meant from the start from no interference.
  
  Jan 27 02:55 PM

• What if the Fed Cut Doesn't Help? [view article]

  I actually wrote about the exact same thing last year when the Fed lowered interest rates - I said it then, a lower interest rate will not stop the economic slowdown. It is worse to lower the interest rates and see little improvement, than to keep the interest rates steady - at least that way you still have those cards to play.
  
  Lower interest rates will only devalue the USD further and cause inflation in the U.S. economy. Ultimately, it is not a good move if you look at things long-term. Jan 23 02:05 AM

• As New Auto Prices Become Unsustainable, Tata's On to a Winner [view article]

  Yes, I know it won't meet U.S./Canadian standards - but it show manufacturer's that its at least possible to make vehicles cheaper than they are now.
  
  And, as you mention, it will serve India and some other markets quite well. Tata is positioned well to have a good future in the developing world. Jan 21 11:04 PM

• As New Auto Prices Become Unsustainable, Tata's On to a Winner [view article]

  You can't find a parking spot at Wal-Mart because that is the only store anyone can afford to shop at anymore. Looking at Wal-Mart store parking lots is a poor way to determine if we are in a recession... Plus, Saturday mornings are typically VERY busy for retail stores since many of the M-F crowd use Saturday to get some shopping done. As the economy worsens, expect more people to shop at Wal-Mart! People still have to eat.
  
  The U.S. is in the beginning stages of a recession... It will get worse. I don't pay any attention to the Liberal media... I just watch as the USD becomes worth less and less each passing day (worth about the same as the "Canadian Pesso", as we used to call it). I just watch as emergency funds are injected into the market to keep it afloat. I just watch as the U.S. government runs around the world looking for several billion dollars a day to keep the empire afloat. I just watch as the Fed goes around the world to other central banks and asks them to work together to help stabilize the situation in the U.S. - Now the Bank of Canada is lowering interest rates because the Canadian dollar got too strong against the USD - Even though they have rampant inflation in the west due to a major economic BOOM and were recently considering INCREASING interest rates. I just watch as Citibank and others go overseas in search of new investors (almost begging) to sell parts of their companies in order to get cash injections - Selling portions of major American banks to Asian countries is becoming common. I just watch the banks rolling out their write-downs of $18 B a piece. I just watch the bankruptcy numbers continue to increase... I just watch the number of FOR SALE signs hanging in front lawns. I just watch the number of homes in foreclosure. I don't get my news from the mainstream media - each of those can be had right through direct press releases from the respective government departments or company websites... You're the one listening to Liberal media if you think the problems are a temporary setback and that the U.S. economy will quickly be back on track to allow the stock tickers to continue their infinite ascent (much of which is due to inflation anyways, but meh).
  
  PS> If you think shopping at Wal-Mart contributes to the sustainability of the economy and that proof of others shopping their in droves is proof the economy is good - You're in for a rude awakening! Of course people are going to shop at the cheapest store when their discretionary incomes begin to decline.
  
  I'd actually tend to think that your thinking is quite Liberal. I'm just an ultra-conservative who believes fiat currency is inherently flawed and that economies that are financed completely with debt are on a dangerous path. You can't print or borrow your way out of a recession forever. They should have allowed a small recession several years ago. Now, everyone has borrowed so much money in the past few years and that is what fueled the boom - But now that so many people are burdened with 25 year mortgages on $500+k houses, they will have to pay for them over a 25 year period - Those people won't be buying ANOTHER $500k home anytime soon... When such a large number of people buy/build homes that are $500k+ a piece, the economy is going to see a massive boom - Normally not everyone would buy all at once, but the Fed lowered the interest rates and created a housing boom - at the same time banks lowered their lending requirements and were giving money out to people WITHOUT proof of income or assets! So, almost everyone bought.
  
  Let's hope things get back on track - but as long as so many people believe the Liberal media's idea that the market should always be a bull and things are fine the way they are with everyone getting further into debt - we will have problems. How about this: If times are so good, why is everyone so far in debt? If times were truly good, we'd have more savings in this country. Instead we are selling the infrastructure right from beneath our feet! Go look at how Cintras (linked to Spanish King) is buying highways (already built/paid for by government) and putting up toll booths. Go look at how Cintras is building a major super-highway from Mexico to Canada (it's already in Texas) - Go look at how the legislation for that highway states that no other highway can "compete" with it. Now we'll have legislated highway monopolies? For crying out loud, what do they mean no other road can compete with it? Its a road! It's a basic peice of infrastructure that a government is supposed to provide for - and now it can't have "competition"... C'mon, the more infrastructure a country has, the better... How's this all happen? People aren't paying attention because they all get their news from the Liberal media that either never mentions it, or briefly does and then moves onto the latest news on Britney.
  
  America is so deep in debt, it's selling itself! That is the scary part. You won't notice the recession for a while - they will just crank up the printing press and start printing them dollars so quickly that inflation will ramp up. Let's hope we work our way out of this mess we've created - but its real hard to start working your way out of a mess when you have so many that don't believe we're in one! Arghh. Yes, there are fallacies with my argument/examples - go ahead point them out - I don't care. If you can't see the basic jist of the situation we are now in, it's your problem.
  
  User 141119, Yes, I'm sure you're correct - the economy is honky-dory, it's a damn good day, and it's a perfect time to go borrow some more money to buy stuff at Wal-Mart like everyone else. Everyone else is doing it. //end Jan 18 12:14 AM

• Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News [view article]

  I agree Long-Short Guy! Jan 16 06:31 PM

• What Constitutes an Alternative Energy Company? [view article]

  Ultimately I think GE will become increasingly green, so expect the percent of green sales to increase quickly. I believe they will do this as it begins to make sense from an economic standpoint. GE can't turn green overnight - they are a massive company - but at least they are one of the large companies that is trying to steer into the right direction.
  
  Economics will dictate what they do in the future and "green" is now profitable. Who would think GE would have gone green and began to generate so much green revenue in a few short years? Jan 16 06:30 PM

• Encana Set to Grow as Natural Gas Prices Rise [view article]

  Thanks, Bull.
  
  I had not heard they were selling the non-NA assets - but that doesn't matter to me as I'm more interested in all those NA assets they have yet to develop.
  
  As for the dividend yield mistake, damn Yahoo! Finance... guess they haven't updated it yet. It doesn't materially change anything, except it makes ECA an even better investment - and just goes to prove management WANTS and IS increasing dividends. Jan 16 06:07 PM

• The Federal Reserve Has Failed Us [view article]

  Kunst, I agree. I come from a business background and I know there are MANY issues all working out at the same time. The unsustainable economic model which the US now relies on is largely continued by the Fed and the way it entices/pushes debt onto the consumers and manipulates our currency.
  
  It seems like every company wants to build products in foreign countries but sell to the large US market, but the market will obviously decrease due to the loss of jobs and income. I don't think there is any moral reason Americans should have a better living standard than others either, but the Fed is acting in an unsustainable fashion and it will hurt us more in the long run by burdening us with debt.
  
  But we aren't just competing with laborers in foreign countries, but against their currencies as well... which is another part of the problem with being competitive - especially when our own currency is so unstable and manipulated.
  
  I don't suggest getting rid of fiat currency and the Fed would fix all problems but I think they are part of a larger issue that will ultimately ruin the currency and hurt middle class America - Especially because now instead of just being uncompetitive, we will be burdened with large debt and the interest payments that come with that (Thanks Fed!) - Many of those laborers we are competing against won't have those large interest payments and burdensome debt because they are unable to borrow such large sums of money to begin with. Our ability to borrow such large sums of money has pushed up our cost of living ($500k to buy a normal house!?! How is that sustainable? But that is partly the fault of the Fed). Add to that the free trade, poor education standards, and the many other issues we face, and I agree... a rotting tree is a good analogy. I've been able to see the cracks in the foundation beginning to show for a little while now and it scares me.
  
  I sat down wanting to write some of this down and figured I'd start with the basic foundation upon which the economy is built (fiat currency and the Fed). It wasn't intended to show all the reasons for the economic woes. It wasn't the best article but you could write a book about this stuff and still miss things. As any article writer, I was planning on writing on the other issues later. I didn't want to write too much at once or it starts to look like a really long one page book (on the internet its one super long page!) and no one would bother reading it... Jan 13 10:49 PM

• The Federal Reserve Has Failed Us [view article]

  dan94: "The Fed is not a private, profit-making institution."
  
  The Fed is a private corporation, and you can almost certainly guarantee they make a profit - even if they don't, it is often used to bail out banks for which the owners may also have an interest in. The Fed doesn't have to make money itself for it to be responsible for making its owners money... But as a privately owned corporation that controls the money supply, I'm pretty sure they make a profit or there would be no point in owning it. Jan 13 06:51 PM

• The Federal Reserve Has Failed Us [view article]

  I was trying to deal with is the fundamental building blocks for our economy and why its unsustainable (an artificial situation 'in and of itself'!).... There are other issues at hand, but the Fed and our fiat currency is one of the building blocks upon which the economy and entire monetary system is built - and it is being run unsustainably and irresponsibly. I maintain, the Fed should be abolished as it has created more problems than solutions and its continued interference with the economy will be disastrous - every time we turn around they are bailing someone out of a situation which they helped create, and in doing so they are creating another problem.
  
  You can't print your way out a recession forever - That only works as long as others are willing to take USD's and the rest of the world is waking up to the currency situation and a lack of an M3 index is scary when trying to determine what the USD should be worth.
  
  You can't borrow your way out of a recession forever either... borrowed money must be paid back and in the meantime interest payments eat away at consumers buying power and the size of their discretionary budget.
  
  Inflation numbers are understated as well. Do this for enough years and you can slowly erode middle-class America.
  
  The Fed has failed. The Fed's failure has cost middle-class America dearly. I think the worst is yet to come and it will be almost entirely the Fed's fault. I couldn't write all the reasons for the economic woes in one article... but I think the biggest problem is the Fed and fiat currency and I stand by that. I fully expect they want it to fail so that Americans demand the situation be fixed. The solution they will offer will be to enter a North American union with a new currency - and that scares me even more. Either way, the worst is yet to come.
  
  Name one fiat currency that has not failed in history. Name one economy or empire that used and abused a fiat currency that did not ultimately fail because of the unsustainable economic situation? You can only defy economics for so long before it takes hold and corrects the situation. Jan 13 05:27 PM

• The Federal Reserve Has Failed Us [view article]

  Kunst: "This was an artificial situation which has eroded over the decades. It has nothing to do with the Fed."
  
  I agree it was an artificial situation that has eroded over the decades as other countries developed and started to compete with our workers. I think the entire economy is usustainable, even today. I also believe the Fed is part of the problem (that doesn't mean they are the entire problem, but they are part of it). I think the so called Free Trade Agreements are another issue that makes the situation unsustainable... An American company doesn't have to follow half the laws and regulations if it just outsources to another country... We by law must pay workers a minimum wage, take care of the environment, etc, etc... The countries we can outsource to have none of those laws/regulations. They have a huge copmpeititve advantage against us cause they are playing by a different set of rules.
  
  Like I said, the topic is too large for me to write about in one article and that was why this is such a poor article. Sorry. I know I didn't do justice to the topic and I'd like to apologize. Jan 13 04:31 PM

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