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Attn: Ben Bernanke

 

Dear Sir,

 

The Dollar appears to be up sh&t creek without a paddle. I recommend that while Citicorpse is having their emergency meeting, you need to have your own emergency meeting and immediately raise the fed funds rate to 8% or higher. Save the dollar. This is also the only way to comply with your secondary job to keep gold down. Have you looked at gold lately? It closed over $800! your plutocrate buddies are going to get anxious.

 

Sincerely,

 

mdporter

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To all my fellow Stoolie's who are sitting long Gold -- consider taking a little off the table, or at least, please be very, very careful and use trailing stops to protect your capital.? ? ? :ph34r:

620366[/snapback]

 

 

Appreciate the advice, and you absolutely may be right. But on the flip side of the coin (no pun intended), I'd also like to note that for the first time in my 5.5 years of buying gold, I took some off the table at 731 and 745 last month, because I thought gold was too high in the short term. I took that money and QQQQ '09 and '10 puts, respectively, because I think the Nasdaq is too high PERIOD (as does anyone with some sense left in them). It could still pay off on the long run, but obviously, my timing was WAY off, as we weren't anywhere near the high for either of them.

 

On another note, I sold most of my Jan '09 puts in Merrill and immediately moved the money into Jan '10 QQQQ puts. Buying low and selling high can be tough to do (see previous paragraph), but by having financial stocks going way down while tech defies gravity, the pigmen (or whomever) are making this too easy! :lol:

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To all my fellow Stoolie's who are sitting long Gold -- consider taking a little off the table, or at least, please be very, very careful and use trailing stops to protect your capital.? ? ? :ph34r:

620366[/snapback]

 

 

Appreciate the advice, and you absolutely may be right. But on the flip side of the coin (no pun intended), I'd also like to note that for the first time in my 5.5 years of buying gold, I took some off the table at 731 and 745 last month, because I thought gold was too high in the short term. I took that money and QQQQ '09 and '10 puts, respectively, because I think the Nasdaq is too high PERIOD (as does anyone with some sense left in them). It could still pay off on the long run, but obviously, my timing was WAY off, as we weren't anywhere near the high for either of them.

 

On another note, I sold most of my Jan '09 puts in Merrill and immediately moved the money into Jan '10 QQQQ puts. Buying low and selling high can be tough to do (see previous paragraph), but by having financial stocks going way down while tech defies gravity, the pigmen (or whomever) are making this too easy! :lol:

620370[/snapback]

 

Sometimes it's better to get out and leave some money on the table, than to overstay your welcome and get caught in a downdraft.

 

I guess how you manage your affairs depends on how much time you can devote to sitting in front of your computer.

 

I'm heavily short the Q's via the ETF QID.

 

I know that sooner or later, the wheels are comin' off the Market's wagon -- and my theory is the higher the techie stocks rise, the farther they'll fall.

 

The hardest thing for me is finding the patience to sit tight and wait when I see other things happening.

 

It ain't easy... especially on days like today. The ETFs SRS and SKF are hot.

 

FWIT, I'm very bullish long-term for commodities, especially the precious metals.

 

But I fear that there is a deflation dead ahead that will temporarily knock prices of equities and commodities down a substantial amount (which would make the Fed very happy as it would boost the USD at the same time).

 

The major monetary inflation, IMO, will come AFTER a deflationary crash, as the Fed responds to cries of anguish from crushed citizens and businesses. :blink:

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Citigroup Inc. Chief Executive Charles Prince will offer to resign on Sunday, according to people familiar with the matter.

 

The development comes as board members are expected to gather for an emergency meeting this weekend, people familiar with the matter said. The meeting comes amid worries of further writedowns and pressure on Mr. Prince.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1194033638...s_us_whats_news

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wow did you read this, UK banks affected by the credit crunch have resorted to the barter system for trading (I think they'll find that gold is a better system) :)

 

 

Market insight: Prepare for the credit drama sequel

By Gillian Tett - Financial Times - ft.com

 

This week, a banking friend made a startling confession. In recent weeks he has been furtively unwinding some large investment portfolios linked to subprime securities.

 

But as he has embarked on this sordid task, he has discovered that the only effective way to get rid of these distressed assets is to avoid putting any tangible price on the trade.

 

?Barter is the only thing that works right,? he chuckles grimly. ?It is like the Dark Ages.?

 

FT.com

 

More specifically, the experience of living through the Enron scandals earlier this decade means that the audit industry is now terrified that it could face lawsuits if it is perceived to be too lax towards its clients. So some now appear to be demanding that their banking clients reprice their mortgage assets according to the only visible market tool ? namely the ABX. It is thus little wonder that some banks have suddenly been forced to increase their writedowns in recent weeks. Indeed, I would wager that the pernicious combination of ABX and the ?Enron factor? is a key reason for the recent shocks emanating from Merrill Lynch.
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I called Schwab retirement services today and asked if I could have certificates for my stocks in my Roth IRA issued in the name of the firm as custodian for my IRA, i.e., "Charles Schwab and Co. custodian/FBO my name IRA." The phone rep had to get her manager for the answer. Like I expected, the answer was along the lines of "What'chu talkin' 'bout, Willis." <_<

 

Then of course, the rep asked my why I wanted to do this, as if there could be no possible sensible reason why anyone would ever want to do this. I told her "uh, to guard against instability in the financial markets." :mellow: She said she didn't think this would accomplish that. :unsure: I don't think she caught my drift.

 

What I meant to say was "because I think your POS firm is going to be a stinking, rotting carcass within 18 months and I don't want my assets tangled up in bankruptcy receivership for the next 5 years preventing me from trading."

 

They offered no means to get certificates issued in the IRA and suggested it could not be done without tax consequences. So, I'm on the prowl for a broker who would be willing to have share certificates issued to them as custodian for my IRA. If any of yous stoolies could be of help here, I would be most appreciative. B)

 

Otherwise, I'm half-tempted to at least withdraw the principal from my Roth, which would not be taxable, and get certificates issued in my name, leaving the gains on deposit in the IRA.

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wow did you reaad this, UK banks affected by the credit crunch have resorted to the barter system for trading (I think they'll find that gold is a better system) :)

 

 

Market insight: Prepare for the credit drama sequel

By Gillian Tett

 

This week, a banking friend made a startling confession. In recent weeks he has been furtively unwinding some large investment portfolios linked to subprime securities.

 

But as he has embarked on this sordid task, he has discovered that the only effective way to get rid of these distressed assets is to avoid putting any tangible price on the trade.

 

?Barter is the only thing that works right,? he chuckles grimly. ?It is like the Dark Ages.?

 

FT.com

620376[/snapback]

 

Bartered?

 

Probably traded a CDO for two Big Macs (with cheese) and a Diet Coke... :P

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I called Schwab retirement services today and asked if I could have certificates for my stocks in my Roth IRA issued in the name of the firm as custodian for my IRA, i.e., "Charles Schwab and Co. custodian/FBO my name IRA." The phone rep had to get her manager for the answer. Like I expected, the answer was along the lines of "What'chu talkin' 'bout, Willis."  <_<

 

Then of course, the rep asked my why I wanted to do this, as if there could be no possible sensible reason why anyone would ever want to do this. I told her "uh, to guard against instability in the financial markets."  :mellow: She said she didn't think this would accomplish that. :unsure: I don't think she caught my drift.

 

What I meant to say was "because I think your POS firm is going to be a stinking, rotting carcass within 18 months and I don't want my assets tangled up in bankruptcy receivership for the next 5 years preventing me from trading."

 

They offered no means to get certificates issued in the IRA and suggested it could not be done without tax consequences. So, I'm on the prowl for a broker who would be willing to have share certificates issued to them as custodian for my IRA. If any of yous stoolies could be of help here, I would be most appreciative. B)

 

Otherwise, I'm half-tempted to at least withdraw the principal from my Roth, which would not be taxable, and get certificates issued in my name, leaving the gains on deposit in the IRA.

620377[/snapback]

 

 

don't you think that they would at least bailout IRA's? Public would approve that.

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wow did you reaad this, UK banks affected by the credit crunch have resorted to the barter system for trading (I think they'll find that gold is a better system) :)

 

 

this is a good bit...

 

More specifically, the experience of living through the Enron scandals earlier this decade means that the audit industry is now terrified that it could face lawsuits if it is perceived to be too lax towards its clients. So some now appear to be demanding that their banking clients reprice their mortgage assets according to the only visible market tool ? namely the ABX. It is thus little wonder that some banks have suddenly been forced to increase their writedowns in recent weeks. Indeed, I would wager that the pernicious combination of ABX and the ?Enron factor? is a key reason for the recent shocks emanating from Merrill Lynch.

 

FT.com

620376[/snapback]

 

Bartered?

 

Probably traded a CDO for two Big Macs (with cheese) and a Diet Coke... :P

620378[/snapback]

 

sounds like what they really need is a box of matches, so they can burn it all before they end up in court :)

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I called Schwab retirement services today and asked if I could have certificates for my stocks in my Roth IRA issued in the name of the firm as custodian for my IRA, i.e., "Charles Schwab and Co. custodian/FBO my name IRA." The phone rep had to get her manager for the answer. Like I expected, the answer was along the lines of "What'chu talkin' 'bout, Willis."? <_<

 

Then of course, the rep asked my why I wanted to do this, as if there could be no possible sensible reason why anyone would ever want to do this. I told her "uh, to guard against instability in the financial markets."? :mellow: She said she didn't think this would accomplish that. :unsure: I don't think she caught my drift.

 

What I meant to say was "because I think your POS firm is going to be a stinking, rotting carcass within 18 months and I don't want my assets tangled up in bankruptcy receivership for the next 5 years preventing me from trading."

 

They offered no means to get certificates issued in the IRA and suggested it could not be done without tax consequences. So, I'm on the prowl for a broker who would be willing to have share certificates issued to them as custodian for my IRA. If any of yous stoolies could be of help here, I would be most appreciative. B)

 

Otherwise, I'm half-tempted to at least withdraw the principal from my Roth, which would not be taxable, and get certificates issued in my name, leaving the gains on deposit in the IRA.

620377[/snapback]

 

 

don't you think that they would at least bailout IRA's? Public would approve that.

620379[/snapback]

 

[note of explanation: I am an unrepentant gold kook] :ph34r:

 

I would guess so but when and at what value is the question. At the value of my shares when the firm went bankrupt? If the reimbursement takes months or years, my fear is that gold and my PM shares would have zoomed higher and I would have been fleeced out of my gains. Whereas, if I possessed the certificates in my name or at least in custodial name differentiated from the firm's assets, I would reap those gains.

 

My further fear is that in dollar terms the value of the reimbursement would be a fraction of the value at time of bankruptcy because of the ongoing dollar destruction. x dollars today is, in my opinion, worth much more than x dollars will be a year or two from now.

 

Then, of course, there is the inflationary aspect of such bailouts, which, undoubtedly would send gold even higher, the dollar even lower, increasing the difference between the reimbursement amount and the amount I would have been fleeced out of. Argh.

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Skidmark-

 

Maybe you should read the information at the link below.

 

http://www.sipc.org/who/sipc7questions.cfm

 

Also, you might want to go back and read you custodial account agreement with Schwab.

 

Schwab like all borkers is obliged to NOT comingle their assets with their Client's.

 

If you want to take delivery of the shares in your name you can-$50 fee per certificate. But, that would almost certainly be considered a "taxable" event by the IRS.

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