In the Mud

The market is stuck in the mud, waiting for a tow truck in the form of some more good news about the economy. That will come, but when ? More real buyers are needed to overcome trader bearish "bets". Now we see the cost of the poorly designed Obama stimulus plan. Perhaps the word, "designed", overstates its organization. The Obama plan was mostly a hodgepodge of bureaucratic grabs at money. The hogs at the trough in DC elbowed out the real job creation spending.

The roads in Massachusetts are a mess of potholes, yet repair activites seem rare. What has been done for Internet infrastructure spending ? Talk.

China put its money to work quickly and has gotten results. DC dances around the maypole.

New tax increases on the "wealthy" are talking points to "pay" for health care.

New "carbon" tax would be huge over time, but it's just tilting at windmills. [That metaphor comes from the fine book by Cervantes, Don Quixote.]

The Pickens wind farm craters.

France gets 70% of its power from nuclear power, yet the US can't just copy France for a realistic, long term energy program.

G8 dopes talk about global warming - such hot air.

China top dog goes home to deal with rioters. Gosh, and yet talk of a new global reserve currency abound. I dealt with that nonsense here a few weeks ago. But the talk does probably scare off some real investors.

CA heads to oblivion. The pain to suppliers of services & goods to the state will soon kill businesses.

The Fed still does the job, but has just one more mission. Dear Ben: put together a plan to fund commercial mortgage refinancings. Plenty of good loans to good buildings with adequate income can't find a refinancing takeout. Your aid is needed. I had thought the TALF would do it, but the details are lacking. A five to seven year loan term is needed.

Eventually this will get worked out - maybe the fall. But the sloppiness of Obama's efforts to date are hurting now.

ISM data does show improvement. So not all is bad. People want to work to improve their lives. We still have that tailwind, unless government screws them too badly to wipe out hope.

Markets

I wait in cash in Obama Fund. Fido Fund is about 110% long. At 830 on the S&P, I will start looking again unless the news flow changes sooner.

Travel

Tomorrow early I drive to Ohio for an stay of uncertain duration for family matters. I do not have Internet access their with any consistency, so will not post new blogs until I return.

Word of the Day

"Provender" - noun [$10]
Provender means 1. dry food for domestic animals; 2. food, victuals.
Sentence: The big hogs in DC are getting most of the provender from the stimulus plan, so growth in the herd of common people is weaker than it would be had the food been better distributed. Thanks, Obama, for doing a lazy job tending your flock so far.