Not quite as high as the 1,199.20 set yesterday. If we were playing hand grenades I think it would count, but not here. Ya think they are getting any mileage out of teasing those numbers? Rip down and melt up. Rinse, repeat. At least I did not have to move my fibs up today!
Following up on the Mish link from last night on the pension issues, I got this off the web today, Argentina seizes pension funds to pay debts. Who's next? I have brought you various posts from other sources (mainly ZH) that document our governments (banksters) thirst (absolute) need for cash as the rape of the middle class goes into overdrive. This is a serious issue. Whether they will confiscate your IRAs and 401k assets is REAL. They ARE discussing this in Washington.
In order to protect "investors" from themselves the SEC has finally gotten off it's duff to look into something (other than porn as ZH would say). Yup, to protect the "consumer" the SEC inspects derivatives-based funds ETFs could be affected as regulators examine derivatives, position limits your favorite leveraged ETFs. Just in time for a market top! Sure, they are fine to lever long as you like, but to have the ability to leaver short the last great bastion of capitalism (and the only thing standing between the government and total anarchy), there is a chance that ability may be taken away to protect "you". Hell, I would not be surprised to see a complete ban of any form of short available one day soon. How many of you think this is trivial and there may be "more pressing" things like fraud or front running to investigate?
While on the topic of leveraged ETF's you may find this post useful when the prices of some of your favorite ETF's go all whacky. Jesse's Cafe' American has Several ProShares Short ETFs Are Going to Have Reverse Splits This Week. You may want to take a look cause Thursday morning SRS will look a lot different (it won't be as affordable - Hmmm - another thorn in the side of shorty?)
Denninger points out in If We're Dismantling Too Big To Fail... "If the financial system has been "stabilized", if everything is ok, if the stock market is going up because the economy and financial system is healthy, why does the IMF suddenly need $500 billion, with 1/5th of it, roughly, provided by American tax money? Those are a damn good questions.
Mish, as usual, has a quality post in Small Business Optimism "Very Low and Headed in the Wrong Direction” I totally agree with Mish when he says, "One thing this economy desperately needs is to escape solutions offered by Larry Summers and President Obama."
naked capitalism has a rather lengthy but important post on how we got here and the magnitude of the debt crisis (with pictures no less). I suggest this read for everyone. The Origins of the Next Crisis "Recovery or not, weak consumer spending will last for years. I happen to think that we are in the midst of a weak cyclical upturn (predicated on the last shot of stimulus we could provide). But, once this particular cycle starts to fade, we are going to be in a different world, the world Japan is now in." Well, I'll say that we're either the next Japan or worse.
INTC hit a double and is up almost a buck after earnings were announced. JPM announces before the bell.
GL out there! I'm off to pitch a baseball game for Little Shanky.
