Catherine’s Money & Markets Commentary: October 4th, 2018

By Catherine Austin Fitts

Theme:

The Fed Raises Rates: The Turn of the Screw:

Rising interest rates, LIBOR transition, impact on derivatives book, including interest rate swaps, equities markets

Stories:

  • Europe Unveils Special Purpose Vehicle to Buypass Swift
  • Push for War with Iran
  • Trump at UN; Lavrov speech
  • The Battle for the Constitution
  • NAFTA moves to Congress; Promotes GMOs & Fracking
  • NY Times, Cuomo & AG tango on Trump Taxes
  • Kavanaugh: Confirm or not? Unpacking the issues and the distraction/manipulation underway
  • Impact on Election: From WSJ –

    The 63 million or so Americans who voted for Donald Trump weren’t the lunatic fringe. For many, Mr. Trump was their vessel for two concerns—the future of the Supreme Court and the implications of a Hillary Clinton presidency after Barack Obama’s two terms. The Kavanaugh nomination has put both these powerful subtexts from 2016 back in play. The Democrats have managed to shift the midterm elections away from Mr. Trump’s personality and make it about the Supreme Court, the status of the law in the U.S. and the nature of Democratic rule. The sincerity of Ms. Ford’s testimony notwithstanding, this phase of the confirmation began with no corroborative evidence against Judge Kavanaugh and is ending with no evidence. The acceptance of this no-evidence standard, not just by the Judiciary Committee Democrats but by nearly all Democrats and most of the media, is something people have noticed.

  • Memphis Chamber President Shooting: A message about “the purge?”
  • Tencent Music Files for $1-2 Billion IPO in US; WSJ 83% of US Listed IPOs are firms that have lost $ in last 12 months
  • House Passes Tax Reform 2.0
  • US farmers hurting; Farm tech and robotics making headlines
  • California is 4th state to pass/sign net neutrality bill; DOJ sues; what did Kudlow say?
  • Rebalancing to foreign markets?
  • DOJ investigating Harvard, now Yale for discrimination against Asian-Americans
  • SEC Engineers Chairman and 2 independent Board members into Tesla
  • Presidential Alert Test Message on Wed

Hero:

US Senator Grassley (R-Iowa)

Check out Special Solari Report – Interview with Alan Phillips

Let’s Go to the Movies

The Spider’s Web: The Second British Empire

Subscriber Charts: October 3, 2018

Set One: Asia, Commodities, Precious Metals, Brazil

Set Two: Emerging Markets, Europe-Asia-Australia, Frontier, India, International Equities, International Equities Minus U.S.

Set Three: Global Health Care, Europe, Germany, Greece, $ US Dollar, Fixed Income: 20 Year Treasury, 7-10 Year Treasury, Aggregate Treasury

Set Four: US Robotics, US Domestics, US Home Builders, S&P 500 Large Cap, Dow Jones REIT, US Real Estate, S&P 500, High Yield Bond, US Dollar, Gold Miners

Subscriber Charts: September 26, 2018

Set One: Asia, Commodities, Precious Metals, Brazil

Set Two: Emerging Markets, Europe-Asia-Australia, Frontier, India, International Equities, International Equities Minus U.S.

Set Three: Global Health Care, Europe, Germany, Greece, $ US Dollar, Fixed Income: 20 Year Treasury, 7-10 Year Treasury, Aggregate Treasury

Set Four: US Robotics, US Domestics, US Home Builders, S&P 500 Large Cap, Dow Jones REIT, US Real Estate, S&P 500, High Yield Bond, US Dollar, Gold Miners

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42 Comments

  1. One of the trade rags I read as time allows is NFPA Journal, and the July/ August edition has an extensive article on the coming cannabis industry. The fire protection aspects of it are much more than the hole you’d burn in your shirt from hot seeds or whatever in a home-rolled joint. Large-scale processing (which is planned nearly everywhere) are essentially chemical plants operated by anyone wanting to cash in on satisfying the jones for a soon-to-be-legalized THC high. Read here: https://www.nfpa.org/News-and-Research/Publications/NFPA-Journal/2018/July-August-2018/Features/The-Cannabis-Industry

    I am not a puritan, prude nor prohibitionist, but the prospect of probably tripling the number of those who are high on THC at any given time is worrisome. It is not that we have solved our worldwide social problems of war, pestilence, famine and death, and we can now relax and mellow out. Indeed, a part of the “traffic tickets for white collar people” will be a much greater probability of failed drug tests, and the ensuing premature career destructions that will result, but for less-restricted folks, greater highway danger to themselves and others, especially in combination with already-distracted driving. I am aware of a truck driver (Federal DOT CDL drivers are permitted 0.00% THC in the blood, see https://www.alltruckjobs.com/blog/no-tokes-for-truckers-marijuana-and-truck-drivers/ ) who ran over and killed another driver at a truck stop and failing the drug test with high THC levels. Apart from the fatality, the driver caused huge additional losses for his own insurance, his employer and anyone else the next of kin could successfully pursue. Yet, here we are wanting to make THC available in Gummi Bears (and worse) for everyone, regardless of their understanding of dosages or effects. It seems like another example of society willing to kill itself in the pursuit of a few dollars more and some cheap thrills.

    1. Just had a long talk with a person who runs a business near us in Arkansas – then can not get and keep drivers. They keep failing drug tests.

      1. No doubt this leads to more immigrant truck drivers, who effectively arrive with ‘clean slates.’ I have noticed significantly more OTR drivers who are obvious foreigners. As so often occurs, it isn’t a want of jobs as much as a want of willing-and-able occupants from among the domestic labor force.

  2. One of the trade rags I read as time allows is NFPA Journal, and the July/ August edition has an extensive article on the coming cannabis industry. The fire protection aspects of it are much more than the hole you’d burn in your shirt from hot seeds or whatever in a home-rolled joint. Large-scale processing (which is planned nearly everywhere) are essentially chemical plants operated by anyone wanting to cash in on satisfying the jones for a soon-to-be-legalized THC high. Read here: https://www.nfpa.org/News-and-Research/Publications/NFPA-Journal/2018/July-August-2018/Features/The-Cannabis-Industry

    I am not a puritan, prude nor prohibitionist, but the prospect of probably tripling the number of those who are high on THC at any given time is worrisome. It is not that we have solved our worldwide social problems of war, pestilence, famine and death, and we can now relax and mellow out. Indeed, a part of the “traffic tickets for white collar people” will be a much greater probability of failed drug tests, and the ensuing premature career destructions that will result, but for less-restricted folks, greater highway danger to themselves and others, especially in combination with already-distracted driving. I am aware of a truck driver (Federal DOT CDL drivers are permitted 0.00% THC in the blood, see https://www.alltruckjobs.com/blog/no-tokes-for-truckers-marijuana-and-truck-drivers/ ) who ran over and killed another driver at a truck stop and failing the drug test with high THC levels. Apart from the fatality, the driver caused huge additional losses for his own insurance, his employer and anyone else the next of kin could successfully pursue. Yet, here we are wanting to make THC available in Gummi Bears (and worse) for everyone, regardless of their understanding of dosages or effects. It seems like another example of society willing to kill itself in the pursuit of a few dollars more and some cheap thrills.

    1. Just had a long talk with a person who runs a business near us in Arkansas – then can not get and keep drivers. They keep failing drug tests.

      1. No doubt this leads to more immigrant truck drivers, who effectively arrive with ‘clean slates.’ I have noticed significantly more OTR drivers who are obvious foreigners. As so often occurs, it isn’t a want of jobs as much as a want of willing-and-able occupants from among the domestic labor force.

  3. The problem with cannabis is that it is a “lead in drug”; and it will always be. Kids start there, and the majority try other things. Sixteen year old kids are selling heroin out of our local high school, and using it. I live in California, and it is legal to grow and sell pot, AND apply for a license as a dealer, At least when it was illegal; I worried less about driving down the street or getting on a plane. Now, people can be drunk, and ALSO stoned. Medical marijuana may help many; but it has got to be thought of in more terms than just making money. I never thought of myself as a moralist, but having 8 (eight) dispensaries within a 20 mile area makes me wonder if restrictions are needed. I did my fooling around with it in college; but had the good sense to not go over the edge. Obviously, I will never be nominated to the Supreme Court, Catherine, having revealed this online (ha-ha).. What is your opinion on all of this? Thank You!

    1. Successful people, families and cultures require clear, coherent minds. How we achieve that is different for different people. A variety of things in combination are destroying our health, our vitality and our culture. Not everyone is going to make it – and typically the more drunk or stoned a person is the more likely they are not going to be among the ones who make it. Question is can you avoid being destroyed in a car accident or other mess caused by one of the people who are not going to make it.

      Its one of the reasons the Solari basecamps are in sparsely populated areas.

  4. The problem with cannabis is that it is a “lead in drug”; and it will always be. Kids start there, and the majority try other things. Sixteen year old kids are selling heroin out of our local high school, and using it. I live in California, and it is legal to grow and sell pot, AND apply for a license as a dealer, At least when it was illegal; I worried less about driving down the street or getting on a plane. Now, people can be drunk, and ALSO stoned. Medical marijuana may help many; but it has got to be thought of in more terms than just making money. I never thought of myself as a moralist, but having 8 (eight) dispensaries within a 20 mile area makes me wonder if restrictions are needed. I did my fooling around with it in college; but had the good sense to not go over the edge. Obviously, I will never be nominated to the Supreme Court, Catherine, having revealed this online (ha-ha).. What is your opinion on all of this? Thank You!

    1. Successful people, families and cultures require clear, coherent minds. How we achieve that is different for different people. A variety of things in combination are destroying our health, our vitality and our culture. Not everyone is going to make it – and typically the more drunk or stoned a person is the more likely they are not going to be among the ones who make it. Question is can you avoid being destroyed in a car accident or other mess caused by one of the people who are not going to make it.

      Its one of the reasons the Solari basecamps are in sparsely populated areas.

  5. Why are receiving Presidential alerts?

    Something is going on… Could it be possibly connected to Sunspot?

    2. Very freightening times, they have access to every phone number and can message you.
      Most likely for inducing martial law, curfews..etc.

      1. Yup. Everything went off today. I always leave my cell in the car. Forgot and brought it into the bag. Sure enough it went off. Cell phone service only started to work here about 6-12 months ago.

  6. Why are receiving Presidential alerts?

    Something is going on… Could it be possibly connected to Sunspot?

    2. Very freightening times, they have access to every phone number and can message you.
      Most likely for inducing martial law, curfews..etc.

      1. Yup. Everything went off today. I always leave my cell in the car. Forgot and brought it into the bag. Sure enough it went off. Cell phone service only started to work here about 6-12 months ago.

  7. Hi Catherine. Can you provide the complete source for the Wall Street journal article cited in this week’s presentation? Great excerpt and I would like to share. Thanks as always for the great work!

Comments are closed.