Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Another Blank Wednesday

Nothing in the news.

Fools lining up for GM paper ... ugh.

I have no fine philosophical thinking to offer today.

It's raining hard & cold here & I have to take the recycling out soon - ugh. I suppose that's a lot better than my 20-something ancestor who lived in a lean-to in Ohio around 1805 in the snow & cold, who went hunting a panther with his older brother with a black powder muzzleloader rifle. Those guys were tough, no doubt. But on days like this, rather than whine, I just think that I'm inherently the same person as them, so tough it out. You are too - you have the same biological and cultural strength that our pioneer ancestors had. Adopt their mental attitude and be a survivor.

Mrs. B bought a two pound bag of "House Blend" Starbucks coffee beans at a local HomeGoods store for $16.99. It's pretty good - small beans with sort of an Italian roast. My first pot will make about four cups. Hmmm ... compared to a $4.50 latte that one has OTHERS make and serve, I break even on the first pot.

Inflation fighting: use your own hands and tools to prepare your own daily food. Even a caveman can do it :)

Word of the Day

"Distaff" - adjective & noun [$10]
Distaff means (adjective) 1. maternal; also female; (noun) - 1. a woman's work or domain; 2. the female branch / side of a family.
Sentence: The great Triple Crown winning horse, Secretariat, showed fine descendants on the distaff line; his daughters were superb mares producing great runners.

23 comments:

Bud said...

martin hutchison in asia times


At present, therefore, Bernanke's QE2 policy occupies a leading position in the history of foolish economic decisions, but is not yet at the summit. Should its damage prove only moderate, then Hoover's income tax increases, the Great Leap Forward and Qianlong's protectionism are all clearly greater follies, although Bernanke has already moved ahead of Reed Smoot, the 1930-32 Fed, Roy Jenkins and John Law.

There is however a modest probability that Bernanke's policies will prove to have been the equivalent of Easter Island's moai obsession, with QE2 being the final stage, ending in decapitalization of the US economy, impoverishment of its people, and a miserable couple of centuries for their descendents tearing down bank buildings.

In that case, since the United States is bigger than Easter Island, Bernanke would clearly have proved himself the champion of economic folly.





does martin hutchison read this blog ?? i believe he reads my comments for sure

Bud said...

Bman.............is dr bernanke monetizing the debt with QE2 ?

Bud said...

inflation check :


bought a 12 pack of diet mountain dew last night at Publix....4.99.............that used to have a 3 handle



i guess the common man won't be drinking diet mountain dew anytime soon.............let it fall my ass

Bunkerman said...

at least temporariliy, yes.

It sure is comforting to hear all these people in other countries screech and scream when Ben does something to help America workers.

That means he must be right.

They need to get off our backs and develop their own domestic demand - the Great Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere that I've written of before.

Give us anotherr nine 16" gun salvo, Ben !

Spin-em said...

as Bunk rolls his wine bottles to the curb in the distance can be heard

(Davy...davy Crockett...king of the wild frontier)

Frosty said...

Sal has become such a whiny little cunt...can't stand to even check in on bunker comments...sorry Mrs B.

Bud said...

Fed's Bullard says change in the Fed mandate is 'interesting'There was a Bloomberg story out last night that said sources believed US Rep Mike Pence, chairman of the House Republican Committee was planning on introducing a bill today that would limit the Fed's mandate to price stability, taking employment out of the equation. This would level the playing field for the Fed with its ECB peer as they have always had that sole mandate in place. This would also allow the Fed to simplify its rate controls. There has been a lot of speculation that the greater risk to QE II was price stability and its main purpose, to push growth and thus employment, was limited in its upside. If the Fed was under this single mandate, or as Jean Claude Trichet always says, 'one needle in the compass' it would have never undertaken QE II which has been met with fierce criticism from Republican economists. There has been plenty of speculation that the Fed's role would change as the Republicans taking the House led to a belief that Ron Paul, an ardent opponent of the Fed, would have a greater say in how it went about its business. The fact that the Fed's Bullard finds the idea interesting may reflect the Fed's wish to relieve itself of the burden of job growth. This will be an interesting story that will continue to play out.






come on Bman...............even you have to agree..............employment shud be taken out of Fed mandate................central bankers no nothing about job creation............not a criticism........just an observation

Bunkerman said...

"House Republican Committee was planning on introducing a bill today that would limit the Fed's mandate to price stability, taking employment out of the equation"

brilliant political move - toss the jobs of the common man onto the trash heap in favor of Europe+Wall Street+Rich.

Sure to be "popular".

Bunkerman said...

lol of course a reason for QE2 is that inflation is too low. These guys are so foolish it defies belief.

Bunkerman said...

Fed mandate should be left alone. People like Volcker cost millions of jobs & gutted the MidWest when he violated that rule in the 1980s.

mfl59 said...

Volcker solved the inflation problem sir...he is an American hero!!!

Bunkerman said...

Volcker was a hog - costs jobs of millions.

To paraphrase The Great Commoner, "The crucified the common man on a cross of green."

Drove $ to the moon, gutted Midwest farm belt & manufacturing.

Hurt Reagan Revolution hugely, too, to by costing him the working majority in Congress.

Bunkerman said...

that loss of power in Congreess prevented him from cutting spending. US has suffered from that baseline increase in spending for decades.

Bud said...

FOOD prices have risen sharply this year according to The Economist's food-price index. A drought in Russia, prompting an export ban on wheat, and an unexpectedly poor corn harvest in America both took their toll. And the price of agricultural commodities could continue on their upward path. The world should prepare for “harder times ahead” according to the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation unless production of food crops increases significantly next year. China's government is even considering price controls on food (and energy) to tame inflation and head-off popular discontent. Yet as our index shows, in real terms food is still cheaper than it was 30 years ago.





well well well................i guess i'm not delusional after all.......my Publix grocery bills are getting bigger


hello dr bernanke...........the common man can't afford to put food on his table.........let it fall my ass

Bunkerman said...

A drought in Russia, prompting an export ban on wheat, and an unexpectedly poor corn harvest in America both took their toll

hmmm ... not much connection to monetary policy there.

I wonder what the price of turnips has done?

Bud said...

from the Economist


The suggestion that speculators deliberately manipulate markets to earn profits through bubbles and busts simply does not hold water. The explanation for the sudden spikes in the prices of many commodities in recent years lies in nothing more sinister than the laws of supply and demand. A ravenous China, underinvestment in mining and agriculture, tight markets and unexpected disruptions to production are usually to blame for rapid price movements. When supply is tight, a small increase in demand can have a disproportionately large effect on price. Even if speculators do sometimes push prices out of kilter the fundamentals soon regain the upper hand.




beefer vikings my ass..........Bman you really need to change the name of this blog


' view from the politburo '

Bunkerman said...

The suggestion that speculators deliberately manipulate markets to earn profits through bubbles and busts simply does not hold water. ... When supply is tight, a small increase in demand can have a disproportionately large effect on price. Even if speculators do sometimes push prices out of kilter ...

Amazing bloviation to contradict themselves in the same paragraph.

QED.

mfl59 said...

Uhhhh Bunkerman didnt you get rich on Wall St sir? And now you blast it at every turn? How very Toddo of you sir...

Bunkerman said...

actually I got rich on savvy LT investments.

The hogs running the Street firms ussually screwed me at bonus time.

Bunkerman said...

I did make the $ on the Street to make the investments.

Spin-em said...

would he dare rage against the machine at fancy parties or NYAC??


heh heh heh... good one Ed

Bunkerman said...

it sickens me to think back to thsoe days and the huge pay that was given to so many of those charlatans.

Spin-em said...

DONNY TRUMP FOR PRESIDENT...HAIR SWOOPERS OF THE COUNTRY UNITE!!!USA USA USA