
The Long-Term Budget Outlook
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This Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report examines the pressures facing the federal budget over the coming decades by presenting the agency’s projections of federal spending…

Two Leaks and the Deepening Iran Crisis
By George Friedman
Two major leaks occurred this weekend over the Iran matter.
In the first, The New York Times published an article reporting that staff at the International Atomic Energy Agency (I…

Wall Street Housing Czars
By Pam Martens
A federal agency tasked with expanding the American dream of home ownership and affordable housing free from discrimination to people of modest means has been quietly moving a chunk of…

Supreme Court to Hear 2nd Amendment Challenge
By David G. Savage
By agreeing to hear a 2nd Amendment challenge to Chicago’s handgun ban, the justices may open the door to similar lawsuits in cities and states nationwide.
Reporting from Washin…

Canada Soundest Bank System
By Rob Taylor
Canada has the world’s soundest banking system, closely followed by Sweden, Luxembourg and Australia, a survey by the World Economic Forum has found as financial crisis and bank failu…

"Don't Talk to the Police"
By Professor James Duane
Continue reading

G-7 May Drop Joint Statement
By Martin Crutsinger
Finance ministers from the world’s seven most developed economies may not even issue a joint communique when they meet in Istanbul this weekend, a senior U.S. Treasury official…

Fleeing the Tax Man
By Karen Hube
As firmer CEO of South African Airways and co-founder of Bain Capital, Coleman Andrews has spent his career in some of the world’s biggest financial hubs. So, considering that he isn’…

Shadowstat's Money Supply, Unemployment and GDP
Continue reading Inflation, Money Supply, GDP, Unemployment and the Dollar – Alternate Data Series

Japanese Ex-Finance Minister Found Dead
Mr Nakagawa, 56, was found dead in a bedroom at his Tokyo home, Japanese news agencies reported.
The long-time LDP lawmaker stepped down as finance minister after appearing groggy at a news confere…

10th Amendment Resolutions
Legend: Blue – Introduced. Yellow – Passed one or more houses. Green – Passed Both Houses. Black – Failed Vote. White – No Resolution Introduced.
Continue reading 10th Amendment Resolutions

Irish Say Yes to Lisbon Treaty, Czechs Reluctant
By Xinhua writer Ding Yi
While the whole Europe hailed Irish “yes” to the Lisbon Treaty, the Czech republic remains reluctant to sign the document, putting obstacles on the path of the European Uni…

From Reuter Editor Picks
School children dressed as Mahatma Gandhi take part in a cultural programme on the eve of Gandhi’s 140th birth anniversary, in the central Indian city of Bhopal October 1, 2009.
Continue reading Fr…

Cash-For-Clunkers Massively Distorted GDP
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By Vincent Fernando
If anyone mentions the just-released 3.5% U.S. third quarter GDP growth, just throw this chart in their face. Cash for Clunkers clearly distorted the U.S. eco…

From Mother Earth News
I just love Mother Earth News. Their latest edition has an article “Five DIY, Low-Cost & Multipurpose Greenhouses.” I have been contemplating building a pre-fab greenhouse and am inspired to rethi…

Butternut Squash Gone Wild
Last year, we planted butternut squash at the lower end of the garden. It started to migrate south. Then this summer we put up a fence to keep out the deer. The squash simply ignored the fence with …

Delegates of the Southern States Resolution and Appeal
Friday, October 2, 2009
(NOTE: This Resolution and Appeal was adopted by the 2nd. Southern National Congress on 12 September 2009 while assembled upon Cheaha Mountain, Alabama)
To the Sheriffs, Poli…

What Americans Really Want
By Frank Luntz
Digging still deeper, my research suggests that we can dial back American anger if we begin to fix two complaints: the lack of accountability and the lack of respect in our dealings wit…

KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers Offices Raided
By Rowena Mason
Police have raided the offices of KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in Reykjavik, seizing documents and computer data as part of an investigation into alleged criminal activity …

The Amazing Cash-For-Clunkers Cliff Dive
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Continue reading The Amazing Cash-For-Clunkers Cliff Dive

American Anger is Simmering
Few nations are as generous with their time and money as the United States, but right now Americans are a suspicious bunch.
Sixty-six percent (66%) of voters nationwide say they’re at least somew…

Police Use Painful New Weapon on G20 Protesters
By: Allison Kilkenny
This technology has been deployed in Iraq as an “anti-insurgent weapon” – it could easily be used as a torture tool.
Pittsburgh police demonstrated the latest in crowd control…

British Columbia May Suspend Seasonal Flu Shots
B.C. might suspend seasonal flu shots as early as Monday for people who aren’t seniors, in the wake of a Canadian study that suggests people who get the normal flu vaccine are twice as likely to contr…

U.S. Drug Companies Chase Vaccines
By Jonathan D. Rockoff and Peter Loftus
Amid rising concern about the threat of influenza pandemics, three big drug makers announced deals Monday that give them rights to new flu vaccines, placing …

Bank of America Chief Resigns Under Fire
By Dan Fitzpatrick and Joann S. Lublin
After fighting to keep his grip on the bank he helped build from a scrappy Southern outsider to the nation’s largest in assets, Bank of America Corp. Chief Ex…

The Secret to Goldman's Good Fortune
By John Crudele
SO, is this how Goldman Sachs does it?
“It,” of course, is making gobs of money even when nobody else on Wall Street can.
And those profits then go into outrageous bonuses to empl…

Federal Reserve Buys More Than 100% of Mortgages Issued in 2009
This is important information. What I’ve found and present below is that the Federal Reserve is not just supporting the housing market, it is the housing market.
Just as important as a person’s desi…

Iran Built Nuclear Site Shielded From Air Attack
By Aliakbar Dareini and George Jahn
In an unusually frank disclosure, Iran’s nuclear chief said Tuesday the country’s new uranium enrichment site was built for maximum protection from aerial attack…

The Mortgage Machine Backfires
By Gretchen Morgenson
With the mortgage bust approaching Year Three, it is increasingly up to the nation’s courts to examine the dubious practices that guided the mania. A ruling that the Kansas …

Vaccine = Swine Flu X 2
By Patrick White
A “perplexing” Canadian study linking H1N1 to seasonal flu shots is throwing national influenza plans into disarray and testing public faith in the government agencies responsi…

Asset Class of the Decade: Gold
by Adam Brochert
In the end as an investor, it’s all about the scoreboard. For those who aren’t traders, allocation to the correct asset classes is critical to long-term returns. Following are the …

G-20 in Pittsburgh
The leaders of the G-20 countries, which account for 85% of the world’s income, cannot meet in an American city without 12,000 cops outfitted like the emperor’s storm troopers in Star Wars. And the …

The 10 Biggest SEC Settlements of the Last Year
By Erin Geiger Smith and Gayathri Vaidyanathan
The SEC alleged that Siemens had bribed officials operating metro transit lines in Venezuela, power plants in Israel, refineries in Mexico and mobile …

Sibel Edmonds Interview
EDMONDS: Okay. So these conversations, between 1997 and 2001, had to do with a Central Asia operation that involved bin Laden. Not once did anybody use the word “al-Qaeda.” It was always “muja…

Gold Price Down, Gold Bugs Up
By Peter Brimelow
Looks like the gold bugs had reason to be wary when gold broke through $1000. But now it’s back down, they’re not particularly worried.
When I last looked, Australia’s “The Priva…

Obama's Move: Iran and Afghanistan
By George Friedman
There are four permutations Obama might choose in response to the dual crisis. He could attack Iran and increase forces in Afghanistan, but he might well wind up stuck in a long-…

Germany’s Merkel Set To Form New Coalition Government
We have reached our election goal,” said Merkel, who is about to start coalition talks with the business-friendly Free Democratic Party.
Together with the FDP, the CDU/CSU got 48.4% of the votes, e…

Grayson Questions Federal Reserve General Counsel
Continue at Rep. Alan Grayson: “Has the Federal Reserve Ever Tried to Manipulate the Stock Market?”

G-20 Relaunched as World's Top Forum
By Gregor Peter Schmitz
Pittsburgh, a city built on steel production, is showing its tough side as it hosts the G-20 summit. The 4,000 police officers eye anyone walking past the city center’s cordo…

N.Y. Law Opens One-Year Window for Time-Barred 9/11 Claims
By Joel Stashenko
Despite strenuous objections from New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s administration, New York Gov. David A. Paterson has signed a bill into law that opens a one-year windo…

Device That Grows Meat in Your Kitchen Wins Design Prize
By Evan Shamoon
Meat “ethics” are about to get even more complicated.
For electronics manufacturer Electrolux’s recent design competition, first place went to a device that creates meat and fish b…

DOD: If You Lose Your Home You Lose Your Clearance
By Sheldon I. Cohen
While the Obama Administration says it is trying to save jobs, stave off foreclosures, fight real estate fraud, and help small businesses survive, the Department of Defense is d…

State Housing Agencies May Get $35 Billion in Treasury Aid
By Dawn Kopecki
State housing agencies in the U.S. that provide mortgages to low-income borrowers would get as much as $35 billion in federal aid under a new U.S. Treasury Department program, people …

Vatican Revamps Its Bank's Ranks
By Stacy Meichtry
The Holy See announced a sweeping overhaul of the Vatican bank’s management as part of Pope Benedict XVI’s push for greater transparency at one of the world’s most secretive finan…

Where’s the Ammo?
By Mary Foster
Bullet-makers are working around the clock, seven days a week, and still can’t keep up with the nation’s demand for ammunition.
Shooting ranges, gun dealers and bullet manufacturers…

Is There Water Out There?
By Kenneth Chang
There appears to be, to the surprise of planetary scientists, water, water everywhere on the Moon, although how many drops future astronauts might be able to drink is not clear.
D…

Economics 101 – Michel Chossudovsky on the Banker Bailouts
Continue reading Economics 101 – Michel Chossudovsky on the Banker Bailouts

Australia Engulfed by Dust Storms
A huge outback dust storm swept across eastern Australia and blanketed Sydney disrupting transport, forcing people to stay indoors and stripping thousands of tonnes of valuable farmland topsoil.
View…

The Billion Dollar Gram
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This image arose out of a frustration with the reporting of billion dollar amounts in the media. That is, they’re reported as self-evident facts, when, in fact, they’re mind-boggl…

Boston Launches Flu Shot Tracking
By Stephen Smith
Using technology originally developed for mass disasters, Boston disease trackers are embarking on a novel experiment – one of the first in the country – aimed at eventually creati…

Rauni-Leena Luukanen-Kilde on Swine Flu
Continue reading Rauni-Leena Luukanen-Kilde on Swine Flu

From Business Week Archives
I had several requests for old clippings. A member of the Solari team called Business Week about several articles. They recommended we simply scan in our copies. So we did.
Austin Fitts Better Be Goo…

U.S. Regulator to Unveil Open Internet Plan
By John Poirier
The top U.S. communications regulator plans to unveil proposals Monday for ensuring Web traffic is not slowed or blocked based on its content, sources familiar with the contents of …

Federal Reserve Accounts For 50% Of Q2 Treasury Purchases
By Tyler Durden
“The degree of intermediation by the Federal Reserve in the issuance of US Treasuries hit a record in Q2, accounting for just under 50% of all net UST issuance absorption. This is a…

Bad News for Mers in Arkansas and Kansas
By Kathleen E. Kraft
On March 19, 2009, the Supreme Court of Arkansas determined that Mortgage Electronic Registration System, Inc. (“MERS”) was not a necessary party to a foreclosure action invo…

VeriChip Shares Jump After H1N1 Patent License Win
Shares of VeriChip Corp (CHIP.O) tripled after the company said it had been granted an exclusive license to two patents, which will help it to develop implantable virus detection systems in humans.
…

Former Pakistani Army Chief: Blackwater Involved in Bhutto and Hariri Hits
TEHRAN – Pakistan’s former chief of army staff, General Mirza Aslam Beg (ret.), has said the U.S. private security company Blackwater was directly involved in the assassinations of former Pakistan…

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Stats
Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) Status Report
Stats for states involved in the pilot program of using EBT to transact USDA Nutrition Assistance Benefits.
Note the contractor for many of these s…

Time Magazine: 10 Questions for Ron Paul
By Melissa Golden
Q: What role does the Federal Reserve have in our current economic downturn? — Brad Thomas, Kalamazoo, Mich.
Ron Paul: The Federal Reserve is the key element in the formation an…

The Franklin Scandal
The Franklin Scandal: A Story of Powerbrokers, Child Abuse & Betrayal
I just finished reading Nick Bryant’s new book, The Franklin Scandal: A Story of Powerbrokers, Child Abuse & Betrayal.
…

The Option ARM Armageddon
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Continue reading The Option ARM Armageddon

National Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement
I recently received an Action Alert about the National Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement (NLGMA) from Weston Price (available to subscribers only.)
From the Weston Price alert: “A National Leafy Green…

Health Bill: HR 3200
Here are links to draft versions of HR3200: America’s Healthy Future Act of 2009
House version
CRS Summary
Senate version

Four Major Developments All Gold Investors Should Watch
By Jason Hamlin
A series of new and significant events have unfolded over the past few weeks that have influenced the precious metals markets and will likely continue to support gold’s price adva…

Will Ireland Scramble the European Union?
The bureaucratic grind to end national sovereignty in Europe continues with German approval of The Lisbon Treaty challenged in the courts and the second Irish referendum scheduled for October 2, 2009…

Catching L.A.'s Rain
Continue reading Catching L.A.’s Rain With a City-sponsored Pilot Program

Small-Business Owners Fret Over Large IRS Fines
By Laura Saunders
Five years ago, car-wash owner Orman Wilson set up a pension plan for himself and six employees. For that, he may owe the IRS a $1.2 million tax penalty.
Mr. Wilson, the owner of…

FDIC Considers Borrowing From Treasury
By Jessica Holzer
Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair said Friday her agency may tap its $500 billion credit line with the U.S. Treasury to replenish its deposit insurance fund, t…

Space Power Plant
The Japanese government is prepared to spend some 2 trillion yen on a one-gigawatt orbiting solar power station—and this week Mitsubishi and other Japanese companies have signed on to boost the ef…

When the Levees Broke
I just watched Spike Lee’s documentary about the floods in New Orleans during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
There is a lot that has gone unexplained about what happened in New Orleans, includ…

Gold/Silver Ratio
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By James Turk
September 18, 2009 – The performance of the gold/silver ratio over the past month has been stunning. From a high of 68.0 on August 19, the ratio closed today in …

Sotomayer Challenges Myth That Corporations Are Persons
By Jess Bravin
In her maiden Supreme Court appearance last week, Justice Sonia Sotomayor made a provocative comment that probed the foundations of corporate law.
During arguments in a campaign-fin…

Good Billions After Bad
By Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele
As the Bush administration waned, the Treasury shoveled more than a quarter of a trillion dollars in tarp funds into the financial system—without restrictio…

Me Talk Presidential One Day
By Matt Latimer
As a speechwriter for George W. Bush during the final years of his presidency, I’d seen crises and controversies. But nothing prepared me for the imminent collapse of America’s fr…

G-20 Summit, September 24-25
G-20 meets in Pittsburgh this coming week in a meeting chaired by President Obama. This meeting follows up on the Action Plan on the Financial Markets and World Economy developed in the Washington m…

California Probes Credit Rating Agencies
By Peter Henderson
California Attorney General Jerry Brown issued subpoenas on Thursday to Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s Investors Service, and Fitch Ratings as he launched an investigation of wheth…

Joel Salatin at The Farm
By David Liechty
Wednesday I had the chance to amble on over to The Farm, with the blessing of organizers Greg Landua and Ethan Roland, to attend the last day of the Ecovillage Training Center Tenn…

Shelving Missile Shield Entices Moscow
By Steven R. Hurst
President Barack Obama is betting Moscow will return the favor on missile defense by helping him blunt Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
In what could shape a major geopolitical realignme…

Free Gold Money Report
James Turk’s reports have been subscriber only since 1987. He is now making them accessible for free.
James is one of the finest commentator on the precious metals markets and the economy we know.
…

Obama Backs Extending Patriot Act Spy Provisions
By David Kravets
The Obama administration has told Congress it supports renewing three provisions of the Patriot Act due to expire at year’s end, measures making it easier for the government to spy…

Wall Street May Find Itself on The Hook
by: Matthew Goldstein
Sometimes legal fishing expeditions pay off.
A year ago, a Connecticut hedge fund sued UBS, contending that it knowingly sold toxic mortgage-backed securities to institutiona…

Sleuth Humor
That’s the way it is down here. If you can’t be counted “on”, you can’t be counted “in.”
~ PI Burke, from Down Here by Andrew Vachss
The Official Website of Andrew Vachss

Rasmussen: Opposition to Health Care Reform Still 53%"
Just before President Obama gave his speech to Congress last week, 44% of voters nationwide supported his health care reform proposal and 53% were opposed. Today, eight days after the speech and a b…

Want A Better World? Let the Doha Round Die
By Liu Guoyuan
Many analysts are still pessimistic about the outlook of the Doha Round of global trade negotiations, despite recent positive signs.
Following a mini-ministerial meeting held on Sep…

Family Planning 1/5 as Expensive as Cap & Trade
By Matthew McDermott,
A new report coming from Optimum Population Trust and carried out by the prestigious London School of Economics says that expanding access to family planning and contraception…

OK for Corporations to Break the Law if State Pays
By Jeremy Scahill
On September 11, the US appeals court for the District of Columbia announced in a 2-1 decision that it was throwing out a lawsuit against CACI International and L-3 Communications T…

The Truth About the Health Care Bills
By Michael Connelly
Well, I have done it! I have read the entire text of proposed House Bill 3200: The Affordable Health Care Choices Act of 2009. I studied it with particular emphasis from my area…

45% Of Doctors Would Consider Quitting If Congress Passes Health Care Overhaul
By Terry Jones
Two of every three practicing physicians oppose the medical overhaul plan under consideration in Washington, and hundreds of thousands would think about shutting down their practices…

Weston Price Foundation & Food-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund
I just renewed my annual memberships in the Weston Price Foundation and the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund with additional donations.
I expect my donations to meet the same performance stand…

How Many Unexplained Deaths Will We Tolerate?
Continue reading Jim Garrison`s (Kevin Costner) Final Speech

Rockefeller & Co. CEO Dies From Gunshot Wound
By Charles Stein
James McDonald, chief executive officer of New York investment firm Rockefeller & Co., died Sunday, apparently from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to the Bristol Count…

Financier Finn Casperson Dead in "Apparent" Suicide
By Kim LaCapria
Ex-CEO of Beneficial Corp. Finn H.W. Casperson was found dead in an apparent suicide behind an office building in Westerly, Rhode Island.
Casperson, 67, was discovered dead of what…

Blagojevich Fundraiser Found Dead
By Jesse Solomon and Justin Lear
Police are investigating the death of the former chief fundraiser for ex-Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich as a “death-suicide,” an Illinois mayor said Sunday.
Financi…

Newport Beach Financier Danny Pang Dies at 42
By Ruben Vives and Louis Sahagun
Newport Beach financier Danny Pang died early Saturday at a local hospital, according to the Orange County coroner’s office. The cause of death has not been deter…

The Kitchen Garden
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Kirby and Kaiser on Derivatives
View On the Edge with . . . Rob Kirby

How The Federal Reserve Bought The Economics Profession
By Ryan Grim
The Federal Reserve, through its extensive network of consultants, visiting scholars, alumni and staff economists, so thoroughly dominates the field of economics that real criticism of…

Does the EU Club Have a Future?
By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard
Broadly speaking, the world is run at the outset of the 21st Century by the United States and China together in uneasy condominium. This is the surprising reality of our er…

Jewels of The Galaxies!
By Hubble space telescope
By David Derbyshire
These stunning images – taken by the rejuvenated Hubble space telescope – have captured the jewel-bright colours of colliding galaxies, exploding s…

Fannie Mae Legal Expenses
By Brian Baxter
Recent disclosures from the Federal Housing Finance Agency reveal that lawyers representing former Fannie Mae executives Franklin Raines, J. Timothy Howard and Leanne Spencer have r…