Monthly Archives: February 2013
On the Impossibility of Limited Government and the Prospects for a Second American Revolution by Hans-Hermann Hoppe
All Hope And Change Roads Lead To Greece | Zero Hedge
Who says Barron’s covers are only good for timing contrarian market inflection points to the millisecond? In this specific case, we learn that all hope and change roads (soon to be de-potholed following another trillion in road renewal stimulus, aka ARRA 2.0, spent shortly and paying a minimum wage of $9.00 to the depotholers) lead to, where else, Athens, Greece.
Meanwhile in Greece, free food for everyone!
Chart Of The Day: Spanish Debt | Zero Hedge
Beleaguered Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy just broke another record. As if a plague of corruption scandals was not enough, Spain’s debt-to-GDP has now reached levels not seen in over 100 years. As El Pais reports, Spanish debt levels rose at an alarming EUR 400 million per day in 2012 making for the largest annual increase in debt in the nation’s history – all the while proclaiming austerity.
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Key Macro Events In The Coming Week | Zero Hedge
With the world engaged in open currency warfare, the only thing that matters are the assorted drivers that push various global currencies higher and lower. Here are the key macro/FX-related catalysts in the week ahead.
2012 Q4 GDP has been weak in G3 and indeed Europe more broadly, (however it has generally surprised to the upside in Asia), consequently, the momentum of business sentiment will be key to watch. The Euro area flash PMI, German Ifo and the Philadelphia Fed survey are released this week (the China flash PMI will be released on Feb 25). The consensus expects a further small rise in the Euro area services and manufacturing readings. The week also brings a batch of central bank commentary, where the focus will be on references to currency strength; these include the RBA minutes followed by testimony, a speech by RBNZ governor Wheeler, Bank of Thailand policy decision and Bank of England minutes. The Federal Reserve will release the minutes from the last meeting and they may contain important clues on the bias of the Committee with respect to how long it expects the current QE program to last. Additionally, the Committee may have discussed the potential merits of outcome-based guidance for balance sheet policy, which may be reflected in the minutes.
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European Bank CEO Admits: “The Whole Thing Is Doomed” | Zero Hedge
As the European parliament attempts to create a budget and Draghi repeats how the temporary lull in European growth is merely a prelude to a growth renaissance in the second half of the year (not to be confused with the verbatim lie rehashed by European dignitaries in 2012, 2011, 2010 and 2009), it appears a few leaks of truthiness are seeing daylight in the disunion. In a shockingly frank interview, the CEO of Saxo Bank describes the Euro’s recent rally as illusory and that “the whole thing is doomed,” as the continent is not supported by a fiscal union. As Bloomberg reports, Lars Seier Christensen says he would be a “seller of the EUR at anything near 1.40,” noting that “right now we’re in one of those fake solutions where people think that the problem is contained or being addressed, which it isn’t at all.” Confirming that the only thing holding the farce together is political not economic efforts, he sums the situation up perfectly: “people have been dramatically underestimating the problems.”
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via European Bank CEO Admits: “The Whole Thing Is Doomed” | Zero Hedge.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi: Flow, the secret to happiness – YouTube
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi is one of the greatest living psychologists of our age. He earned his fame by defining and providing a detailed description of the FLOW state. Csikszentmihályi described FLOW as “being completely involved in an activity for its own sake. The ego falls away. Time flies. Every action, movement, and thought follows inevitably from the previous one, like playing jazz. Your whole being is involved, and you’re using your skills to the utmost.”
What's happening? 