Hi DJ, Let us get the bad news out of the way first. Yes, the new world order is still collapsing, giving way to the newer global disorder, in slow motion. At the same time, the organized, motivated, and unthinking inhabitants are busy discharging potential energy via the most unproductive of channels and the meanest of ways.
On the one hand, we are reducing revenue, forfeiting margin, losing profit, revealing balance sheet, restating income, slicing investments, forgoing interest, and either borrowing what we cannot pay back, or hiding what we must from the would be borrowers and rent-seekers. Yes, I am talking about Xerox, IBM, GE, and oh, name another company, say AOL. Now, apparently, I am also talking about cousin Fannie:
quote.bloomberg.com
OTOH, we are squandering what wealth remain on undertakings that pay no return, breed necessity for further negative return enterprise, and misapplying our creativity on conflicts that defy resolution. Yes, I use the collective ‘we' and am talking about all the conflicts going on (and no, I do not agree with everything stratfor has to say; I think they are euphorically optimistic):
Message 17325686
Message 17325702
Message 17325712
Message 17325716
Message 17325724
… and I am sure that the peace-keepers will be welcomed with open arms and flapping windbreakers given this:
news.ft.com
I actually think ‘engagement’ is dangerous, unwise, intractable, unavoidable, costly, and for a long time, perhaps another 4000 years?
BTW, the worst news is that we can do little to influence the collapse sequence, and once we get done with collapsing, we will then have to deal with the consequences of this, as we had always suspected:
Message 17309722
and/or this, as we feared:
quote.bloomberg.com
and of course this:
Message 17325734
causing ever more this:
oops, no relevant URL handy, and so ‘deflation, profitless recovery and global revenue decrease’ will do.
Yes, ACF Mike, inflation and deflation, all at the same nasty time. I did not bother to go to the library to look up the cure or the prevention. Aztec cure will have to do, and we already got the bug, so no prevention. The current administering of medicine is making our condition worse.
The faith of many had been misplaced in the few, in Nasdaq, Enron, CNBC, New Economy, old Greenskaput, newer economists, debt-led consumption, consumption-led wealth reporting, and whatever else, like IBM and GE. Oh, yes, and do not forget the dollar, that strongest of currencies dependent on the steadily weakening hand of Japan, the most weird of economies.
Japan now needs oil 'shoku' as much as an Israeli marketplace needs Mr. Jihad Mohamed Abdullah wearing a technical windbreaker.
The end for the faith is nearing, and it will be checkmate in three moves, even as the officialdom targets a draw in five while forecasting a win in two moves.
We do not need to fuss over the insignificant math problem of GDP, productivity, hedonics, unemployment, inflation, deflation, stagnation and devaluation. Never mind the purity of the pool of funding or the source of replenishment. We simply sense something is terribly wrong or at least not all together right.
I am concerned, not worried, excited, not despondent, cautious, not paralyzed, for anything is possible tomorrow. This is optimism.
Chugs, Jay |
