Gold Daily and Silver Weekly Charts - Straining

"The first item on my agenda would be to restore democracy to the United States of America by overturning this disastrous Citizens United Supreme Court decision.

Why do I put that issue first? Why not health care, why not jobs?  Because if you end up with a Congress or with governors or legislatures who are beholden to the billionaire class, we are never going to make progress on any issue that impacts working families.

And in my very strong opinion — and I speak to you as chairman of the veterans committee in the Senate — I do not believe that people fought and died for democracy so that billionaires can buy elections.”

Bernie Sanders

A number of people have remarked upon the ballooning open interest in the silver market on the Comex. When the number of open contracts goes higher on a down movement in price, that is more indicative of short selling than of longs selling their contracts and closing them out, obviously.

I also hear that there was a remarkably large expansion in the inventory of SLV the other day, causing some of wonder at the source of all that silver.

It is difficult to understand what is true and what is not in these markets. And that in itself ought to give you some concern about their veracity.

This decline in character is sad. But this too shall pass.

Have a pleasant evening.

SP 500 and NDX Futures Daily Charts - Within Striking Distance of a New Dow All Time High

"Do you know what you are singing about? You are singing of brotherhood, but in your face you look like you hate everyone. That will show in your music."

Arturo Toscanini

Stocks were in rally mode today as Wall Street looks forward to tomorrow's FOMC decision. Because of the weaker economic data, there were more hopes that the decision would not contain any hawkish language.

I expect the taper to continue on schedule. I do not think that the Fed will do anything new just yet.

After the bell the President tried to reassure the American people that the ebola outbreak in Africa would not spread to US shores, and if it did, it would be quickly quarantined.

Geopolitical risk was apparently off the table today.

It is hard to be too cynical about these markets. Alibaba is on the way.

Have a pleasant evening.

Gold Daily And Silver Weekly Charts - Struggling

"A great deal of intelligence can be invested in ignorance when the need for illusion is deep."

Saul Bellow

The precious metals futures on the Comex were struggling most of the day, with both gold and silver ending just a little higher.

The Comex warehouse activity is not worth mentioning.

Gold is moving from West to East. China is clearly executing some longer term plan with regard to gold and its own fiat money as a reserve currency.

Let's see what happens.

SP 500 and NDX Futures Daily Charts - Fight For the Right to Party

"Men, it has been well said, think in herds; it will be seen that they go mad in herds, while they only recover their senses slowly, and one by one."

Charles Mackay

Techs were struggling most of the day, as the SP 500 showed some futures driven resilience.

The Empire Manufacturing number came in high side, but the actual Industrial Production came in negative, with last month being revised in half. Go figure.

There will be an FOMC decision on Wednesday. With the Alibaba IPO in play, I don't think we will see the markets fall appreciably unless there is a serious break in the geopolitical stability.

Have a pleasant evening.

 

Mark Crispin Miller: Forbidden Thoughts and Fighting For the Truth

Mark Crispin Miller is professor of media studies at New York University. He is known for his writing on American media and for his activism on behalf of media reform. His books include Boxed In: The Culture of TV, Seeing Through Movies, Mad Scientists, a study of war propaganda, and Fooled Again: How the Right Stole the 2004 Elections. He was a contributor to the documentary 'Orwell Rolls Over In His Grave.'

He graduated from Northwestern University with a BA in 1971, Johns Hopkins University with an MA in 1973, and a Ph.D. in 1977.

He talks overall about certain stories that are not considered to be appropriate for discussion in the mainstream media.  He sees 'conspiracy theory' as a method of shutting down discussion, and traces its use as a rhetorical device to a memo in 1967.

He more specifically discusses the 2000 election of G. W. Bush, and what he considers related stories that are ruled off the table in a presentation to the 911 Architects and Engineers for Truth.

I don't agree with all of his specific issues perhaps, but found his discussion of 'process' in the mainstream media to be interesting.  More often than not the 'discussions' of situations which we are given in the media are often highly uninformative, if not misleading either by omission or intent.

And I also feel that the First Amendment is being tested now as it has been in the past. It seems to be curtailed for individuals who are shuffled off to 'free speech zones' while wealthy corporations are being given privileges that the Constitution maintains for individuals and was not intended for powerful legal constructs that provide limited liability and anonymity.

Gold Daily and Silver Weekly Charts - Le Comité de Salut Public

 

"The tendency of things is, indeed, to make matters worse still. The poor are every year becoming poorer, and more dependent upon those who feast upon their sufferings; while the wealth and power of the realm are annually concentrating in fewer hands, and becoming more and more instruments of oppression.”

John C. Cobden, 1854

Retail sales came in a bit hot today, triggering a 'good news is bad news' selloff in stocks, at least according to the spokesmodels on bubblevision.

The retail sales results were really not all that impressive,  just coming in-line for sales ex-auto. And who the heck knows what adjustments were used to cook up the hot auto sales number?  These one shot numbers are a flash in the pan.

I think the sell off today, ahead of the weekend, is due to the cumulative jitters of the markets, given the drumbeats to war in Iraq, Syria, Ukraine, and the potential 'Yes' vote in Scotland for independence. 

"The White House is characterizing the U.S. mission against Islamic State militants as a war, similar to the one waged against al-Qaida and its affiliates."

The skeptical part of me wonders if this is the 'wash and rinse' that I suspected they might try to sneak in ahead of the actual Alibaba IPO.   In our economy war is a good thing, to the extent that it is good for business. 

It must be good.  We seems to look for wars all the time, and even in the most unlikely of places, on the suspicion that someone there must be up to no good.   The US did a rather effective stop and frisk with extreme prejudice on Iraq, for example.  They are still trying to get their lives back together. 

And apparently Obama wants to do the same thing to Syria.  We lift things up, and put them down.  And that includes not only tyrants, and vicious rebels, but whole nations and peoples.

So let's see what happens next week.  Besides the FOMC two day meeting, which will provide us their guidance on the afternoon of Wednesday Sept 17th.  A calendar for next week is included below.

Nothing particularly interesting occurred in the Comex warehouses for precious metals yesterday.

In other news of the day, the Fed has just formed the Committee on Financial Stability led by Vice-Chair Stanley Fischer.

When this news came out it reminded me of the (in)famous Comité de Salut Public, or Committee on Public Safety which became the de facto executive government during the worst parts of the French revolution.

I would bear in mind that this unelected committee of the Fed has no standing to make laws, and is part of a private organization which unfortunately has been given too many discretionary regulatory powers by the ideologically crippled, do-nothing Congress.

And in cheerier news, Golem XIV is back from his holiday.   Welcome back.

I am looking forward to hearing more about the momentous vote in Scotland next week as the election day approaches.  So many English nouveau riche and political parvenu of the master class have issued nearly hysterical screeds against it that I know it must be of some importance.

As they advise, we must always 'be afraid, be very afraid.'   And have only a little hope.  After all, government is complex, and these matters are best left to the ruling class.

"Hope. It is the only thing stronger than fear. A little hope is effective. A lot of hope is dangerous. A spark is fine, as long as it's contained."

President Snow, The Hunger Games

Have a pleasant weekend.

SP 500 and NDX Futures Daily Charts - Skittish, Toombs, Very Skittish

"Don't know about this new crew of yours. They seem a bit skittish. Probably shouldn't tell them what happened to the last crew...

Skittish, Toombs, very skittish."

Vin Diesel, Chronicles of Riddick

Stocks were on another down leg today, taking back the late afternoon stick save from yesterday, and a little bit more.   The selling was very orderly and the VIX barely bleeped.

The spokesmodels were claiming this is a 'good news is bad news' thing, since retail sales grew more than expected in this morning's economic news. Well, not at all, if you look at them ex-auto.

The market was in profit taking mode today, and most likely based on international jitters ahead of a weekend.  Greed was struggling with just a twinge of fear.

I speak to those jitters in tonight's gold and silver commentary above.

Have a pleasant weekend.

Thursday Evening: Only Time

I remember 9/11 like it was yesterday.  I am surprised at how strongly the memory of it remains.

I remember the concerns of the class mothers, who were thinking about what to do with the children in our little school in a town, on one of the commuter train lines to NYC, when it came time for them to go home.

 

They did not know who would not be showing up, and exactly what to do about it.

I remember the line of the mourners and hearses at the very large group funeral service at our local church.  And the plaque we put up at the train station with the names of those who died.

 

I remember hearing about the woman who put one of her husband's suits on the bed, and just laid down next to it, and cried for her loss.   

I remember those brave responders, and so many others, who gave their lives assisting others, in the last full measure of devotion.

I remember seeing the fear in people's eyes for days afterwards, and how that fear was used. 

 

And how Wall Street and the government beat its breast, and wrapped itself in the flag.

I look on how we have acted since then, and where we have been led.

 

Ours is certainly not the only tragedy in the world.  But it has been given to us, and is ours.

Who can say what will happen?   Only time.  And those of us who still live, and how we abide.