12.30.05 Somebody asked about a 911 Ground-zero slabbed silver American Eagle, and what the premium should be.

Firstly, PCGS will put an american flag on more slabs than the one to which you refer.

Secondly, I suppose you would have to ask that somewhat disconcerting question: can I find a bigger fool tomorrow on whom I can unload this bombastic bauble?

As a point in fact, these types of issues I have seen on ebay seem to command a high price from the seller, but no prospective bids.

If so, say: I'll sell you an obsolete asian coin, wrap it in tinfoil, and scribble -Rape of Nanking- on it in grease pen and only charge %1,500. wot a deal!

Or, how about some 10-year african scrip celebrating 10years of Hutsi/Tutsi genocide and intercine incest unrest?

PCGS wallows in their medium -draping plastic dreck over what once represented beauty, purity and value. Did they shine it up real purty like for a little extra value added?

This years water year has been a mess so far. Currently the spigot is open wide, incoming from Kamchatka. Has been raining on Northern Ca/Nv a good part of the last several days. Rain during the winter season is not desirable, snow drives the society. Currently raining between the California coast all the way to Lovelock, Nv. The snow level was predicted for 7,000 feet today, but currently well over 8,000. Rain is pouring on the ski resorts, and colder weather will move in later tonight. This creates a deadly situation, literally. Movement of colder air behind rain that had been falling on the minimal snowpack creates an unstable snowpack. The current rain on snow will freeze as a layer. New colder and lighter snow will pile on top and build a heavy pack. This heavier snow will slide along the ice bench - i.e. avalanche. This type of weather situation reminds me of the deadly 1986 season. The major difference is that the minimal snowpack will not melt and cause the major floods that plagued the Truckee, Carson, Yuba, and American Rivers that year. [i well remember sandbagging the Truckee in feb or march 86 only to watch her run completely dry two miles downstream and 18 months later (where the new truckee meadows treatment plant was installed)].

The lack of snowpack dries up the snow/tourism income and further pressures irrigation, farming, development, industry and mining down the road.

Water rights in the Truckee Meadows are up roughly 800% in the last 4 years, going parabolic. The market is amazingly thin and illiquid. Buying rights in volume is practically non-existent; they are bundled into auctions and the Truckee Meadows Water Authority and the LEN/CTX/RYLs of the world compete head to head (for some Head, get it?).

This further depletes allotment for recreation set aside guaranteed via various compacts, regulations, and agreements. Hence the State Water Engineer needs to capture mine-dewatering to meet their obligations or face the wrath via the wraiths in the antimining/environmental21agenda alliance (who seem to forget to staff their office with waterologist yet see no shortage staffing with english/pre-lasw majors seeking a beginning gig.)

How about a hyetograph based on the 06 water year to date for the Humboldt basin?

Or better yet, why not model out the mercury fate and transport from the vadose to and through the hypophreatic zone via Modflow/netpath et. al. and submit to the Battle Mountain BLM per the open Environmental Assessment period for the current plans on the Cortez trend, the future of water battles in the state and industry, and see what the DOI hydrologist have to say in reply to your articulated concerns?

12.30.05 For those who pundits predict a regime change in Saudi Arabia for 2006

Just like every year, picture this: Their stock market is up about 200% in the last couple years.

Does that look like a country - or at least the smart money -betting against continuity, or otherwise expressing despair and intuiting imminent change?

Friend of mine regaled an attempt to climb a mountain that instead resulted in the rescue of a couple fools a few hours ahead that tried a 'shortcut'. I've seen a couple of those myself. Interesting thing, it isn't too easy to spot a denizen of the mountains who may make a mistake while in the big city, but sure is obvious when a city fool tries to shortcut the mountain and outsmart mother nature.

Body recoveries suck, period. Usually occurs in bad weather and a chance to hurt yourself trying to rescue a worthless bag of bones. And that is under better conditions. Body part recovery, at least those parts not smeared over the bedrock apron, is a whole nother exercise in despair. One of my friends filmed an accidental death; worse than having to scoop up the body I imagine. She was rather shaken by the event, accidental snuff filming wasn't her goal.

So then, in the stakes of the one-upmanship contest; who is NEM sidewardley glancing at; reclining deliciously under the mistletoe?

Nevada Cement, a Utah Corporation. missed a filing date and was temporarily suspended from trading on the Nasdaq. Under this circumstance an 'E' is added to the ticker symbol . i.e. NCEM becomes NCEME. The delisting was temporary because the paperwork came through just a couple days later, so the E was dropped very quickly.

literally, a system broke down.

management creates and oversees systems.

short term listing/delisting and price action are mere symptoms.

keeping the e on the end is a swipe.

a swipe test is an analytical diagnostic.

not sure cosmology has a temporal input...

ciao

( fyi, there is another Nevada Cement corporation; based in Nevada )

This Nevada Cement is owned by Eagle Materials, a publicly traded company from Dallas Texas. Some of the locals (Fernley, Nv.) believe that the plant is (or at least was) owned by the Lyndon B. Johnson family. Have not been able to determine whether this family has, or had, substantial ownership proportion of Eagle Materials (Ticker: EXP). Also unclear to me if Eagle Materials was a spun-off subsidiary of the large company Eagle-Picher (privately held), also based in Texas. Based on EaglePicher history, location, geographic nexus, and sector activity - there could be a bit of truth kernel in the mix. Curiously, they also happen to have an aggregate plant (diatomaceous earth) fairly near the EXP plant; (Lovelock). EP also has a DE plant in Clark County. Hence, they have aggregate plants in two of the largest booming areas of the country. EXP performs quite well on their own; maybe some merit to the strategy of holding any publicly traded 'Nevada Cement' company.

Rising sector. Nevada aggregates not a bad place to hold a position. The bug in the ointment, of course, is the historic metals issue. EP was one of the earliest and major manufacturers of white lead. Nearby barium production. And of course, the soap operas series presented on an installment basis by yours truly over the Northeast Nevada clusters and the focus by NDEP/FEDEPA on metal byproduct emission, specifically tungsten, from the aggregate production plants.

Though fund managers should parse the details, any mainstream press/bubblevision mention will likely bollox up the relations.

So i'll type it: Ownership of 'construction companies' by 'Nevada interests' - if you get my aeolian high competency drift -has long proven a curious topic; holding interests in the wandering minds of many who preceded this metalline one.

they want goodies in the Christmas stocking.
All of them looking to score gold at 478.
Not everybody can get everything they want for Christmas.

Some will have to be sated with coal miners.

Traders couldn't get to wall street today or yesterday so they spent the day at home - 'telecommuting'. Which means they were supposed to be working but just surfed the Peer to Peer sites all day...

classic cars are -pretty hot-
real estate is -in a bubble-
commodities are -overdone-
coins have been -on fire-

why is gold gonna go down?

Hearing a couple stories about leaving life behind the Iron Curtain served a chilled reminder.

Not all government propaganda, just those relating to purported economic issues, must go through the censor board at Homeland Security. The other worthless piffle can be simply made up and release immediately as had previously been the case.

The Helium Fund, which I had never heard of, is apparently larger than probably 90% of all companies in my county COMBINED.

Agriculture, Commerce, Energy, Education, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Justice, Labor, State, Veterans Affairs, and State.

If you have ever voted for a Republican or Democrat more than once (allowing a youthful indiscretion), I hold you personally liable for the destruction of my republic.

And why the Supreme Court originally struck down the income tax as unconstitutional: b.c. the government would grow into the current leviathan: reporting to none and detrimental to all.

Interestingly enough, Reid failed to support Gibbons proposed bill to overhaul the 1872 Mining Act; hence it was pulled. Nobody seems to notice or care. The main issue here is not so much that many want the bill updated, but that more individuals want to uphold the DOI moratorium on processing new applications.

"The Salvation Army officials are unsure of the exact value of the coins, which
they showcased at a press conference today." The Press spokesperson further states that they are far behind their fundraising goals for the year. Well, perhaps if they new the value of the dollar, they might do better attracting a few more. That said, Salvation Army is one of my preferred choices. I have given up on the majority of charity orgs that I previously supported.

http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/12-16-2005/0004235522&EDATE=

This supports stock performance b.c. now ETF-linked funds must purchase the security.

For predicting the price movement of certain models and was wondering whether, when, or how to publish the work,. this was my partially solicited opinion:

IF to make a name for yourself, THEN why not make the money with your work and leave a legacy via multimillion dollar foundation for troubled youth or other worthy cause that will last for years after your mortal demise?

IF to show the formula works, THEN why not trade enough trial runs to prove to your self, and then see option one (get rich).

Just look at Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko’s face (remember the poison attack against him that resulted in permanent physical impairment) and know he will make it personal…

How many future courses of events have changed based upon this change in position?

An inert metal that has held its chemical form for thousands of years has been judged by a mechanized program as losing %.00019 of its value within a span of a few hours.

RGJ Journal and comes out against Jim Gibbons proposal for Mining Act of 1872 revision.

http://news.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051211/OPED01/512110332&SearchID=73229265669577

Jimby got it riding on some other terrible legislation in the house, but could not muster any support where it counts - with Harry Reid in the Senate. So, not sure this version is going any where.

mr Gibbons tried to get the lead dog alpha sled view, but pulled up short. He would've loved to had a shot, Nv politics getting some serious play. One of the swing states last election, a canary in the wings, and possibly moving up the primaries next time around.

http://news.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051211/BIZ10/512110303&SearchID=73229265461682

They got picked up in two different trade newsletter today accounting for the rise, amongst other things...

First week of March the new 10 dollar bills go out. Go to the bank and get a couple crisp sheets with consecutive serial numbers.

John Gilmore wins a coin mine cookie. Challenged the 'requirement' that you must present and ID to board a commercial airline. To date the government has been completely unwilling, and more likely unable, to produce the requirement that one must present ID to travel. One of those cases that the government maintains you must do something in their honor yet refuse to produce the authority for such. Basically, the type of 'Democracy' they are attempting to spread throughout the globe. Using you tax dollars at your expense.

NOTE: For those that maintain this is necessary b.c. of the 911 hoax, and further cite the Patriot Act as Authority, please note that the 'requirement' is actually an internal Federal Vitiation Administration policy. Also note the policy directive has never been released to the public or the courts. Further note the date of such policy is 1996. Indeed, all the provisions in the Patriot Act were developed Loooong before 911.

Birth of firstborn, beautiful baby girl. Everything else I ever discussed here doesn't matter when compared. An yet this entry will end at 25 words.

12.2.05 When looking at alternative energies, don't forget to look down the supply chain.

Buy on the dip? When the price backs to the 13DMA as it in turn kisses the 50DMA?

Or, just b.c. you sold your silver/MRB/house/first son and need to put the money somewhere?

Not as much as metals are high, but that the VALUE of the WRONG TYPES of PAPER are getting rather low.

Interestingly enough, I am beginning to see correlation between price of gold and Yucca depository project inertia...

Sure wasn't a matter of much discussion at the agricultural trade expo in Beijing two weeks ago. Most US Western ag states sent reps. No mask wearing, no obvious flu discussions. Business as usual...

equals a drop in one percentage point in the Elko County, Nv. unemployment rate.

One thing I do know is the extra one percent in the workforce is not the miners themselves. You see, 100 dollars ago (price of gold) the mines and properties had already upped production schedules and were scrambling for qualified personnel. The extra one percent employed are those in the service and commercial industries that are supported by the miners paycheck (the highest aggregate wage in the state of NV) as the paycheck flows through the local economy.

http://news.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051202/BIZ10/512020375/1071/BIZ

Infometrica reports that Nv exports were down substantially for the last reporting period, August.

"Precious metals -- mainly gold -- was the state's largest export earner, generating $60 million in foreign sales in August, adjusted for seasonal variation. Precious metals accounted for 28 percent of all foreign sales, plummeting by 32 percent from a year ago."

Interesting how the production of metals remains so high, yet the manufacturing output faltered. Can the cost of energy be blamed? No, not really. The mining sector is the largest user of power in Nv. (yes, even ahead of the casinos on the Las Vegas Strip).

He is a major west coast coin dealer; known as a fair man with good inventory and high prices.

But first, had to get myself a coffee at the local non-chain barista training venue. (Not that I mind chains though, since we hold both PEET and SBUX). Always good to check out the market competition (or, any excuse for a buzz). Ordered a coffee for $1.50. Gave the cashier 2$. She put the two FRNs in the till and looked at me blank, expecting why I didn't walk away. At that point I realized the extent of her ability and reminded her that I indeed the change back. See, I am the old fashioned type that believes the tip is based on service after the fact, not assumed. Further, I like to look see what they give me back in change. (I try to remember to ask if they have seen anything unusual in change.) Of course, with the quality of the baristas they hire now - and the underlying quality of education - they will often hand me a half-dollar as representing something completely unique and mystifying.

There were a few handmaidens behind the counter and they let me browse a few moments before asking if I needed any help. So, I immediately queried them a question which I believe they would have no idea on how to answer. You see, at any negotiating table you want to talk with everybody to engender good will and build relationships, but at those points where you offer substantial matters (such as price and terms) you need to speak directly to the one who holds the decision-making power. Usually this individual is not the one who speaks most or first. Of course you are always better off f you can identify this person well before sitting down at the table. In this case I had done so through due diligence and already knew what I wanted to find out - was a trip to his store worth the extra time and gas over a venture to my tried and true coin locations. (Certainly I had no intention on quibbling over price or any matter of substance on any expeditionary purchase trip).

(Still, he didn't have the one thing, and one thing only, that I inquired about. For that matter, had no idea what I was asking. Indeed, the exchange 'twas a minor comedy sketch).

The housing stock is fairly robust in my neck of the woods. Days on Market and Inventory going up whereas the listing and closing prices are receding. Seasonal fluctuations may subtend some of the trend (home sales week during late fall/early winter). BIL reports inventory is low in Seattle.

1. How can the government get more money out of your pocket? It can install new fees, license, and taxes. This happens as often as they can get away with it, which isn't every time. Occasionally the people do vote down new taxes and fees. So, the government looks for alternate revenue streams that will lie below the radar. One of these is taxes on land and houses and permits for such.

2. As the average price of the home raises, they can now loan out more of the junk paper fiat.

Fannie Mae Announces 2006 Conforming Loan Limit of $417,000

Fannie Mae announced today that it will apply new conforming loan limits, as determined by the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO) based on federal data on mean (average) home prices, to increase its single-family mortgage loan limit to $417,000 for 2006.

As a result of the new loan limit, Fannie Mae estimates that in 2006, as many as an additional 466,326 homeowners would be eligible for a conforming loan.

Conforming loan limits may adjust annually .

Say, when do you think was the last year that the conforming loan limits actually went down?

Has the energy picture actually put Yucca Mountain on the skids for good? Will Harry Reid introduce new legislation to this effect given his increased stature in the senate, or will they silence him first?

Here is the Yucca Mountain Information Station in Goldfield, Nv., on a slow day. Gonna get slower...

11.27.05 A relatively rare earthquake yesterday centered in Vallejo/American Canyon

on the Hayward fault. Usually centered more south. Made me think less askew about the dude who predicted a larger one centered in Vallejo/Napa for next year...

11.27.05 Why does the Secret Service do nothing to prevent counterfeit coinage

coming in from mainland china? bogus trade dollars by the gaggle on ebay. now seeing bogus seated coinage also.

Funny that, the secret service wasn't commissioned to go after counterfeit (1865) until after the USGovt began printing paper money en masse as currency....

Jipangu wraps up purchase of Apollo's Nevada properties as it executes its strategy to become a miner itself.

hey, why not buy up the rest of the state and give sumitomo a run for the yen. Or is the dragon the boxer?

for a fryer flyer

25% in two months ain't too shabby. sell the news and put the original grubsteak in the deep storage freezer just like the big boyz learned me. nothing like going into thanksgiving fat and happy.

Read a (poor) piece about increasing bankruptcy filings in the Las Vegas Review Journal (terrible rag). Though one of the worse financial articles I've read this year, one of the the better comedy skits of the week. Let me sum up the treatise for you:

- Aging and clueless boomer couple catch a whiff of incoming krondretieff winter.-

This quote from the article, about a hapless couple's efforts to enact some cursory semblance of fiducial responsibility is priceless: "To reduce expenses, they cut some of the features from their telephone service package and stopped taking their dogs to a groomer."

There is a WHOLE LOT of FAT needing to be trimmed off the steroid and saltwater-injected sides of beef...

This one bears close watching. Thankfully, Gibbons and Reid are not on the same page. Everything I always wanted from our politicians: gridlock

Arnie is there to convince the Chinese to buy more California debt. Since the peeples voted down his attempts to reign in spending, the mother of all bonds must float.

Or, Instead of assistance on their nu-ku-lar weapons programs as with the previous administration, perhaps more tangible offerings in the war materiel mode - as in copper.

The Chinese copper shorts make further sense of their very recent discussions into purchasing Nevada copper mining concerns.

After paper debt, was else do we have to offer save the ground under out feet...

11.14.05 Someone presented me their dire economic predictions the other day,

While I don’t disagree with either the severity, probability scope or scale – the timing is always an issue. Still a ways off based upon the level that the Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chip is currently integrated into the financial network. This technology must still be more fully integrated into the human psyche and infrastructure before the chip can be implanted.

Afterall, the scenes of misery you paint will only be for those who refuse to accept the chip.

Of course, there is another scenario: the chip will remain voluntary. This scenario is also quite plausible because the –benefits- of the implant will be of such magnitude that not having it will prevent you from trading in the marketplace or otherwise competing for the legal tender.

the vintage cars have done very well, but seem much more unrelated to currency and metals. their runup has been much more sustained from what i can tell, with a nice bump in the last few years.

not sure really what sets the price of art though i suspect it follows coins somewhat as not new money seeks shelter.

pretty much ignorant on the type of art that will buy and sell, i prefer guerilla installation pieces...

no doubt there is the potential for some type of metal/paper/collectible algorithm. maybe that's my lot in life.

Read some protest against the use of white phosphorous shells as war materiel in Iraq. In the states, the USNavy and Coast Guard use white phosphorous flare markers to track the location of something that goes overboard. WP desiccates in the presence of oxygen, and they follow the trail. At the Golden Gate Bridge, the Coast Guard drops the WP flares after some fool jumps; this aids in the body recovery. WP will adhere to dermal tissue and won't stop causing pain until it either completely desiccates, is picked out of the skin with knife, or is immersed in water.

"By August 2005, the US M3 money supply had risen to $9'873.9 billion, whilst at the same time the Official Gold Holdings of the United States had fallen to just 8'133.5 Tonnes, or about 261 million Troy Ounces. This means that today, in 2005, there are $37'831 in circulation for every ounce of gold held by the United States."

So, if they stop reporting the M3, does that mean that gold is now only worth what they say its worth.

and I have a short attention span, let me point out what I consider a major unjust grievance.

Namely, there is no Miners Day. Sure, there is an Anthracite Coal miner day, and the MSHA even designated a coal miner safety day a couple years ago, but no overall Miners Day. Say, why is it that the coal miners get such better holidays anyway. How in tarnation did they get so organized anyway?

and nobody has even heard about it.
shows that nobody sends a letter anymore.
hey, how come they never made a stamp: End of the Postal Era?
why do I have to come up with all the good ideas...

Why has stamp piracy and profiteering never gotten out of control? Did the founders purposefully set up mail delivery as a constitutional element requiring federal mail operations to ensure that letters and marques could never gain undue influence by the profiteer? Could you imagine a stamp nowadays trading as currency? Not a chance, the unit cost to deliver mail has always been kept artificially low via the socialized monopoly. Only once in our nations history, with the first large scale introduction of fiat to fund the civil war, did the price of mail delivery and hence the corresponding stamp face value climb to such a height that it made sense to use as a currency. For a few years in the mid and late 1860s stamps regularly traded for goods and services. Although there had always been small-scale cases of periodic or regional trade previously, the civil war was the first - and last - time when stamp trade became a widespread occurrence. How come?

The wise man once told me, the only crime that will not spiral out of control are those controlled by the government for the government. They will viciously put down any attempts at competition. Does not emitting of postal marks and the lack of postal piracy fit this maxim to the maximum?

You think Bill Gross is wrong about his paper? He bought the recent inverted Jenny Block for about 3-million and swapped it for another single stamp. He authored a really great essay around the time, just a couple weeks ago, that explained why stamps, and likewise coins, were a good investment. As I look around at undervalued commodities, collectibles and hard assets, I see stamps as one of the few that can claim this *potentially* undervalued status. The average age of a stamp aficionado is even older than the median goldbug. Perhaps only 20% as many people collect stamps as do coins.

Personally, i lean toward scripophily, but gotta be an angle there somewhere amongst the perforated corners...

last few days they:
- announced a dividend,
- were named nevada company of the year,
- announced profit up over 80%

and the lowly mercurial element whispered it in your year about 50% lower than it is now...

do you want fries with that?

Too bad it also has to be the day the government attempts to rewrite finance. The smokescreen is the whitehouse attempt to subtend the news by going on their own offensive, accusing others of rewriting history. Long time military stratagems dictate that you accuse the enemy of doing what you have been doing all along, just a little moreso. The federal reserve's new golden child - Ben 'Helicopter Money' Bernanke decides to discontinue the M3 reporting metric.

Essentially, this M3 reporting standard shows the amount of cash sitting in banks, savings and loans and certificates of deposit and serves as an indicator of financial health of the economy and fiscal policy effectiveness. Obviously, the new hed fed doesn't want transparency of the scorched earth policy he will need to implement once his hand is on the tiller, and the other in the till. Guess they learned a trick from the corporate scientists - when you don't get the data you want, start reporting the data differently.

At the other end of possibility, how about this upcoming shindig: Ron Paul, Justin Raimondo and fellow citizens will gather round for Lew Rockwell next week not too far from my keyboard, in San Mateo. The conference title: Gold, Freedom and War.

In the old days, they fought to obtain the gold. Nowadays, those who can least afford the influence of gold must start the fight.

Should get a chance to buy cheaper. Unless it stays in this rarified air and does something exceedingly cool technically, this area is rife with ghoul demons of past resistance.

They may have gotten a better deal for the Carlota property from Cambior had they waited a while longer, but management has made some smart moves locking in copper deposits now rather than later. This, and their ability to make money (still!) at the Robinson property makes them a takeover target. The only growing industry in white pine county. Though, instability at the Veteran Tripp pit is somewhat troublesome.

(Do believe the troubles with Apollo gold started with an unstable headwall; they pushed employees - somebody got hurt and eventually the mine went quiet. Then they sold both production mines.)

A producer making money in its second year of operation, focusing on copper and moly b. denum - with gold as a bonus: not a bad place to be on this planet.

'Twas talking with someone who was bummed that the chinese bought out his local producer.

mercury sayeth: watch the chicoms go after quadra or their kin.

They currently they ship most the metal by truck, rail, and boat to china. May as well ship the means of production and property title and simplify the operation.

when you have no money better than money will get you through those times you have no drugs.

Remember all the golden triangles of the world.

Don't underestimate illicit labor weapons and the legal side of the ledger: ammo and spices ( especially sugar and salt )

10.24.05 The new Head Fed

Paging ben ‘helicopter money’ bernanke on line one.

Only two gents mentioned in my 2+ year blog on the bonds. The current headfed, and the next one.

Lucky guess?

What will benny baby do for you?
Any ideas?
The bonds won’t like it much.
But, you still have three days to lock in the I-bonds at this level of tastiness…

You may have heard about the Carlin, Battle Mountain, Cortez, and Bullfrog districts. How about a few others that helped build our nation...

The Antimony King Mine in Bernice Canyon, Nevada, was discovered in 1907 in quartz host in association with gold, silver, and tungsten. The ore was fine but shallow, production was not fully ramped until 1957, when it produced over 1100 tons. However, the ore played out the next year and the mine was abandoned.

Silver! Gold ! It's burned like a fever in the hearts of men and women everywhere.

The Tonopah Historic Mining Park is on the site of Belle and Jim Butler's original mining claim which started the rush to Tonopah making it the "Queen of the Silver Camps". This strike in 1900 brought the United States into the 20th century. Many mining and processing techniques developed here are still used in mining today.

In the spring of 1900, Jim Butler was camping around Tonopah springs. As the story goes, his burro wandered off, and while searching for it, Jim picked up some promising looking ore. He continued his journey, showing samples to others, but they showed little interest in them. He returned to his home in Belmont, Nevada and told a young attorney named Tasker Oddie about his discovery. Tasker had a friend who taught chemistry in Austin, who had the samples assayed and the ore proved to be valued at over $200 a ton (1900 dollars). At the behest of Jim's wife, Belle, they traveled again to the site of the original find and filed eight claims, removing several tons of ore. For a on quarter share, Wilse Brougher hauled the ore by horse and wagon to Austin then by rails to Salt Lake City for smelting. That first shipment netted the partners $500.00 which was used to buy equipment needed for further development. As venture capital was difficult to obtain, Jim Belle, and their partners implemented the unusual concept of mine claim leasing ;by the :foot:. These lease, which were sealed by a handshake, gave the lessor %75 of all profits from his claim and greatly speeded the development of the district. Many of the miners got rich under this arrangement. The practice quickly spread to other mining districts. The butlers eventually sold their interest in the properties to a Philadelphia financier, who formed the Tonopah Mining Co., with assets of over one million dollars. Tasker Oddie formed the Tonopah Belmont Development Co. and between these two companies produced over half of the previous metals from this mining district. History tells us that production form the mines form this district produced in excess of five million tons of ore. At today's market, the value of previous metals produced would be in excess of $1,200,000,000 and a few cents (and there were NO TAXES!)

1. NYC baby carriage attack prevented because black ops team alpha-one lost their government laptop which held the subway directions

2. Plague-scale grasshopper attack on Miami canceled in favor of multiprong Hurricane Attack on Gulf Coast. (apparently the HAARP weather modification union has more and better connected members)

3. Anthrax attack, the sequel, on DC canceled due to the sheer numbers of congresspersonage who either failed to show up to work this term, or are under federal indictment and hence holed up elsewhere.

4. BioTerrorism event in Seattle postponed b.c. the interior hit squad mistakenly killed off most of the worlds bioterrorism researchers (who in turn headed up the black ops attack teams)

8. sequel attack, that whole flying-of-imaginary-airplanes-into-building-thingie - part duex - postponed due to bankruptcy of entire north American airline industry.

9. watered down alcohol drink with umbrella/sarin attack on major us cruise ship postponed since FEMA commandeered all cruise ships to house their offices at 800% market rates (non-competitively bid, of course) off the NOLA coast. (note, this plan has subsequently been scaled back partially b.c. the lack of/high cost of fuel necessary to power up the jaccuzzis and air conditioning on most window-cabin berths.

10. apparently this one has also been postponed, but is still scheduled for the future. Reportedly involves suspension of Posse Comitatus and whatever few scraps remain of our former republic to fight another invisible boogie man, perhaps some type of invisible flu, nasty cold, chapped lips, or spore, or maybe one of those really bad hangnails that just seem to last forever.

great performance, i say we scrap the constitution to elect him king a third term.

was actually US Forest Service employees, type II fire teams. They set up supply posts. Since there were actually no supplies to give away, they gave away the food and water they arrived with.

The handlers with the press corps would never film them. Instead the press only began disseminating images of the Army National Guard once they took over the Delivery Posts established by forest service teams.

either the press thought that the forest service yellow and green nomex suits were not pretty enough images of NOLA to beam across the wire, or somebody orchestrated the shot of camouflaged federal troops as being the 'calvary that was sent in' to save the hapless villagers.

and those USFS firefighters weren't much too pleased over the whole affair. Perhaps they won't be so eager to save some godforsaken ranchette subdivision outside phoenix or los angeles next time. who would blame them.

years ago i gave up my red card (wildland firefighting certificate) no more than a couple weeks after finishing the initial training over something much less significant than what I relay here...

apparently they didn't like what i said about the change down in reserve estimates last year

http://www.kitcomm.com/comments/gold/2005q2/2005_05/1050508.141020.mercuryee.htm

http://www.kitcomm.com/comments/gold/2005q2/2005_05/1050508.141440.mercuryee.htm

so they decided to make up something completely new and different this year regarding reserve estimates

err. who was that guy who just started a rant about the co after years of lovey dovey?

The Interior Department head, Gale Norton, explained the platform/rig situation in the gulf. She looked nervous. You might not realize she was once a bigmuck in the libertarian party. Next up, the Montana governor, explaining how coal is the new sustainable energy. Guess his handlers forgot to explain (couldn't figure out themselves) it ain't coming from Mt. (CAU ring a bell?).

Thing is, coal actually can be one of the cleanest fuels out there. Problem is the state of operations at most power plants cannot support the intensive level of operations and maintenance needed to support the scrubber technology.

Somebody told me this, and as an expectant father I have a vested interest in determining the veracity of the statement.

Did find that the refusal by person convicted of a felony to give samples for DNA and forensic data bank requires is a punishable offense and requires a $3,000 bail per section 298.1. Louisiana also requires DNA submittal for persons convicted of a felony sexual offense.

Far as I can tell, only instance where the state can 'release' DNA is via authorization in California Penal Code, Section 299, to law enforcement agencies. Apparently there is no restriction on the use of this DNA by the authorities.

Mortgage applications have been steady throughout the summer, but not as strong as last year and this spring. Days on market for the pricier properties have increased. Prices have peaked. New subdivisions now have homes that have flipped twice in a month sitting vacant whereas last year the buyer waiting list had over 100 names.

Had been one of the strongest markets in the western US, peaking later than san diego, san francisco, sacramento and las vegas. thought the mania would continue longer; perhaps it still will...

Under US regulations provisions to reduce mercury emissions by a 'cap and trade' policy will require mercury pollution credits to trade by 2010. The clean air mercury rule was supposed to reduce hg air emissions by 90% in 2008. Instead the new rules will reportedly reduce emissions by 70% when fully implemented in 2018. The system to trade Hg credits is already in large scale development whereas systems to trade NOx, Sox and Pm are not.

(Even though SOx has trades since the 1990's there are no major efforts to rebalance emission trading balances/allowances or those regulatory systems which govern the trade mechanisms).

The dates could change because the issue is in play at the state level, especially Nevada and Montana. For example, here is a decent take on the issue in Montana as published this weekend:

mercury cleanup is not cheap, regardless of the media. look at some of the numbers bandied about here:

Because the poor miner is poisoned near the Las Cristinas concession (read the word),

Currently anticipates the future futures market for Hg credits, not pm2.5 NOx and SOx.

Watch for the tech cominco case to pave precedent for international pollution flow...

Shows what it is: a speculators market. The market still has a ways to run imo (though California prices have already topped in several markets). Still waiting for the ubiquitous 40-yr, 50yr, and intergenerational mortgages for 'investment in your children's future".

Must have a reasonable strategy to conserve resources, reclaim, protect worker safety, be a good neighbor, and conserve capital.

9.22.05 In any of the dozens of mine reclamation articles I read

has the press EVER mentioned that the majority of common remediation techniques were developed and perfected by the mining industry? Nope, not once.

that proves problematic for coal, it the mercury

it basically comes down to the operation and maintenance schedule for the best available technology scrubbers. course, most people can no longer get a comprehension loan, much less pay attention more than a 30sec tee vee spot, so the press is quite happy presenting stories in the dick and jane style.

2005 Jeep Liberty Biodiesel
yep, finally a car made in that us consumers want. The model is selling well.

anybody drive one yet?

Of course, pretty much all diesels can run on vegetable oil. Gut i find it interesting how long it has taken for one of the majors to finally figure out there is a marketing angle here. the first tank is supposedly on a 5% bio ( B5 ) mix. but, at least it is made from OHIO soybeans.

Though not all diesels run well on bio. older engines aren't that efficient on higher blends. some warranties are voided.

Somebody was facing a county highway project that would go through their font yard and asked about options to avoid eminent domain or at least strengthen their negotiation position. Here were my thoughts:

If I were in your shoes, Id consider building the following files:

Your File
( If you sell )
What are your mineral rights
What are your water rights
Plot value of land and built residential square foot over 50 years at 5 yr intervals
Determine value of natural and cultural resources on your land ( midden layers, BRMs, pestils and mortars etc. )
Find soil survey, ag and timber designations

Find endangered species, wetlands, historic designations
Find animal unit month support for your property via equivalency
Fight for property, rights, and access retention clauses ( i.e. if there is an arrowhead on your land, they better pay you for all possible arrowhead you could find and sell in the future x number and types of other resources. i.e. don't quitclaim anything )
Document real property including all alterations and improvements ( gather previous permits )
Show plans for future improvement ( business plans, architect drawings, blues etc. )
Know your other liabilities ( HOA? Hazmat? )
Ensure no encumbrances or liens etc. on your property or title
Survey Coordinates; ensure NAD and Plane are correct and consistent
Determine centerline
Take pictures of and document condition of EVERYTHING RIGHT NOW, before they begin sabotage
Get CLUE file
Document all costs, time and material developing files
Establish all reasonably expected costs to fully document conditions and values
Establish reasonably expected costs incurred by re-locating ( increased taxes, insurance, etc. ) and emotional distress on family ( new school etc. )
Look into sheltering
Look into equity stripping
Negotiate strong indemnify, reimburse, defend, save and hold harmless clauses
Define maintenance and transfer agreements
Retain all rights and claims
Decline all limitation ( affects of approval, etc. )

Their File
( If you fight, or simply want a better price )
What is the county sewer and water offset requirements
What does zoning speak to subdivision and use requirements
Get a copy of the MT Public Utility Commission regs and caselaw ( anything that undermines their standing )
What authorization for right of way/domain do they cite ( i.e. 16 USC? )
Get a copy of all current rights of way agreements for your property and all rights of way and eminent domains previous for your county, city and state
Find previously used rights of refusal and termination in previous ROWs and domain transfers
Shadow their compliance process and documentation
Fight them on suitability analysis ( land classification, soil suitability from Order II soil survey, drainage, etc. )
Find Mt. EIS/R w/ socioeconomic impact analysis of viewshed
Stipulate time and costs for vacate and surrender clauses
Fight them on:

- Congressional conflict of interest
- Third party benefit
- Compliance with equal opportunity, environmental justice and civil rights clauses
- Governing terms
- Survivability provisions and covenants ( termination, revocation, expiration )

- Bond provided to County
- Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity
Fight all Joint Powers/Authorities/Contracts/MOAs/MOUs/Swaps/Possessory-exclusive-permanent interest transfers etc ) :
( ie. Non-Continuous waivers. Anti-deficiency, breach, governing wages, severalabiltiy, joint performance, timelines, conditions and waivers, material assumptions and projections, ad nauseum )

Document breaches and establish claims of continuous waiver
Challenge all notaries, stamps, attestments, testaments and witnesses
Challenge all mitigation measures and certifications

( more than one way of getting paid )

Hope that helps get you started. Have fun with it?

funny, thats exactly what happened the last time they did this type of study 20 years ago...

except this time they use Clean Water Act section 303(d), turbidity as the trigger

(NEM determines soil physics and inadequate waste pile design to blame for failure earlier this year)

(materials management and dewatering have never proven that cheap to begin with,

(hey, what are they up to on their advertising board on days without lost-time injuries along the highway.

other than me, nobody is gonna give agt a hard time b.c. they are out of the spotlight.

deflation/inflation/re-inflation/disinflation.

now how about we argue over the definition of 'energy shock'...

Which is the long term play: the balance sheet, the stock chart, or the reserves?

As long as one of the projects (burnstone or ivanhoe) work out, they will make bank.

the other has the uncertainty of an increasingly dim water and power situation in nevada...

Kimberly Feasibility Study was nice (but action immediately following marked the beginning (Feb 05) of a double top in the chart).

[actually the Burnstone ( property ) pre-feasibility study. Of course, it was the drill programme for the Kimberley (geologic formation ) that was published this February; specifically: lookup section 8.1. and see the resource estimates in section 9.]http://www.sedar.com/csfsprod/data52/filings/00730458/00000002/C%3A%5CSEDAR%5CFILINGS%5CGBGTechReportBurnstone.pdf

Their capital spending trails the sector, yet their development projects are much larger than sector average.

IF you are going to own gold still in the ground, may as be a whole bunch of gold in the ground.

I like their molybdenum exposure in the Yukon, though as a general rule am not fond of mining activities north of the 59th. (property written off anyway)

The company has not made a dime, and maybe never will. But somebody will develop those deposits. The Carlin is still a better bet than the Cortez at this junction, mainly due to existing infrastructure. (Though long term, better keep accumulating the players at Cortez - Victoria Resources, etc.)

Ivanhoe property (predicted cash cost of $134/oz) is equidistant between some wonderful names, perhaps these ring a bell:

Their neighbors are Barrick, Meridian, Newmont (note their choice AND timely acquisition of the Franco-Nv properties) and Glamis.

- Nem problems with dewatering and reclamation uses of Humboldt River basin water (and state/fed beneficial waters) has been challenged in the courts. Rulings not unequivocal imho.

- no key employee insurance. (but really - look at the bench they have and the other properties managed by these guys (Dickinson, Cousens, Mason, segsworth et. al.)

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050907/ap_on_bi_go_ec_fi/economy_13

shows that wages pressures finally exhibit the strongest sustained trend and largest increase in the trajectory of that trend,

all anybody wants to talk about is some two-bit politician and a inconsequential new government giveaway - just like the last thousand giveaways

http://www.kitcomm.com/comments/gold/2005q3/2005_09/1050907.101304.mercuryee.htm

Bring back the AFRO:
Afro-American Face Reserve Organization. These AFRO dollars were used as trade scrip in the 1970's.

The fed has shown their interest in you. Perhaps it is now time to return the favor and regain control over your community.

Private currency has always been a supplement to the state scrip. By the time the civil war was over, the US Treasury was so depleted that it embarked on a campaign to tax everybody and everything possible, including the freely traded private currencies of the day. The state of Louisiana brilliantly upended this tax by instead circulating bonds as currency. Since bonds are not federally taxable, either now nor then the US collected no revenue on the 'Louisianan Baby Bonds'. The bonds traded as currency by face value. Eventually the Congress found out and made the practice illegal.

Namely, issue a state general obligation backed partially by gold.
He thought it would be nice.

The timing of the new bankruptcy laws and calculations for how much minimum payment credit card revolving debt holders must submit every month is nearly divine vis a vis the energy shock and coming budget re-evaluation in most american households.

Some feign true shock about how the situation went down in New Orleans. The abandonment of the state by the feds - both in preparation, defense, and response. The performance of the thief-in-chief as he rubbernecked from his plane burning hundreds of gallons of jet fuel whilst the minions below waited in lines up to a mile long for few gallons of gas. The performance by the worst of the NOLA citizens as they resorted to the most depraved behavior possible when it appeared that nobody was watching, or could raise much of an objection much less a response, and perhaps that indeed nobody cared, frankly.

Some feign true shock that these things could have happen in the works richest country.

Should it still shock you that these things happened in the worlds most indebted country?

Walked myself straight into Cartier (52nd and 5th). Asked to see a palladium watch. They had all kinds of overpriced stuff, most of it ridiculous. Alas, they had nothing in palladium.

Went to Saks, Macy's, Hammacher Schelmmer looking for something - anything - made in palladium. No such luck.

Went a few more blocks until I thought I found the metals and precious Oasis amongst the retail wasteland on the corniest street in the city, the dive known as Tiffanys.

Skipped the overdressed and underwhelming sales ladies and floor reps and guards and middlemen and marched straight into the suspicious eyes of the floor manager and asked to see something in palladium.

She had never heard of the metal. Floor manager for one of the worlds largest retail jewelers was absolutely clueless.

...moving on to the jewish jewel, jewelry and gemstone capital of NYC! Without doubt my quest must be nearing an end as I ambled along W. 47th just south of Rockefeller Plaza...

Western US tourists destinations will see increased visitation compared FL and the gulf coast, though all tourism is deflated as increased transpiration costs eat into disposable income.

Western US also will see increased visitation by scouts looking to disrupt US energy production. transport and transmission.

is quite enlightening. assuredly, it doesn't quite flow the way they promised during the ballot initiatives.

ive visited several of the casinos around NO, biloxi, and gulfport. They were running a solid business. The business model and management there was much more solid than some of the indian casino operations in Washington, New Mexico or the other Harrahs/trump/et. al operations in upper state Miss. or other midwest venues imo.

Some casino money goes into the black market illicit drug manufacture and transport business such as equipment, plants, plots, mules, soldiers, bribes, payola etc. The casino money is more launderable than most other industries. Since many purchased with hot cash are not reported, they in turn feed the black market. This undercuts the state and local government ever-increasing desire to buff out revenue streams. Hence, the state increasingly turns to the casino revenue themselves to support social programs, even as the hot money chases out the good economies.

The cash supports the illicit drug trade so that those who get addicted (those same individuals with a propensity to gamble often have a propensity to drink and drug) will keep turning to the casino as an opportunity to get more money, to buy more drugs.

One of the reasons that methamphetamine has hit your town hard in the last few years is because of the casino proliferation across our country. Takes decades to see the full effects...

The people built a city of 35,000 on a patch of dry lakebed where there had previously only been clay;

People have arrived with thousands of supply trucks full of enough equipment and supplies to last for 5-14 days in some of the most extreme weather conditions on the continent;

The people have brought their own shelters and generators and other temporary means of production;

These people bring enough not only for themselves, but enough to give away to others who arrive under prepared.

None of this was done by the government, in fact - most done despite multiple hindrances and road blocks BY the government.

In a week the city will be entirely abandoned, except for a skeleton crew who will remain for several more weeks to completely restore the city site to what it was - a dry clay lakebed.

Look to the story of another city, New Orleans Louisiana, too se the inverse story -what happens when the government makes and implements the plans. This week proved a watershed in so many ways. Perhaps there is still time for you to understand the true intentions of our government - embodied as DHS/FEMA - and its administration of protection and justice...

Australia, and Nevada. However, the rate of production in Nv is falling less than elsewhere, and therefore it will become the worlds largest producer.

If the prospective nevada miner has political connection and the ability to procure water, petro, and labor through non-retail markets - the company might even be able to make a little money.

NOLA will result in something similarly hideous, and along the same proportional scale...

?only to compound our ability to respond to the next incident.

Or, hey, maybe that was the intent...

Someday, all of these cities ( just a function of time ) will also be destroyed ( or re-destroyed ) by earthquake ( or other tectonic shift impacts such as volcano/tsunami/seiche etc. ) and built again:

San Diego
New York, Ny
Seattle
Vancouver
San Francisco
Oakland
Berkeley
Saint Louis, Mo
Sacramento, Ca
Los Angeles, Ca
Memphis, Tn
Northridge
Anaheim
San Jose
Boston
Tokyo
Kyoto
Jakarta
Mexico City
Manilla
Santiago
Istanbul
Lima

And hundreds more...

Maybe we should just abandon all those cities right now that will every have an earthquake/seich/fire/tsunami/tornado/fire/flood/cyclone/hurricane/moth infestation/mold and save the inevitable deaths and insurance papers down the road???

And mostly, to save ourselves form the cacaphoneus refrain from the minions shouting in unison:
-why didn't the government save us?

- I never knew an earthquake could cause me so much inconvenience, - I demand immediate social services and/or a job/new car/mental health screening/free food, big screen tv, diapers, and shoes!

- Why didn't the city build a larger shock absorber/bungee cord apparatus/bouncy house beneath my apartment building?

9.1.05 Hedgestreet.com
For all of us who ever complained against the house odds and rigged markets.

Perhaps chance to play a game, not like the slot machines where you are betting against the house and therefore the odds are against you, but instead like poker ? where you just have to be a little less of a mark than the person seated to your right.

Has had extremely few failures since Washington appointed the first Engineer of the Army to help out at Breeds Hill.

The New Orleans canals and levees were built with a 250-year life. The system lasted that long. Warranty ran out. Is it really news to anyone?

The rest of the US canal and levee system, with some exceptions such as those waterhighways in the US northeast (B and O, C and O, etc.) have been designed for 100 year standards.

The second highest competent series of levees in the US is in the Central Valley of California. Built to a 100 year spec. Sacramento has been rebuilt twice. (And in a case of major foreshadowing which actually nobody anywhere has picked up on, the Ca. levees failed in two places this year. There was a large, if brief, brouha about the time. The asparagus crop was lost and we all moved on. These levees were built by private consortiums, not the Corps.)

New Orleans and her support infrastructure was built to last 250 years, and that's the length of time we enjoyed her comforts. None of us resting on the benches eating a Po'Boy at the foot of Canal Street outside the Aquarium looking up 25 feet to see the barges flow past really - deep down - knew it going to last forever.

What's everybody gonna' do, move away from the riparian zone/volcano/beach/earthquake area? Those are the pretty places!

Non-quantified risk carries a certain appeal with our species. Look at the very sparse numbers living in the safe areas of the world such as the Gobi or the Four Corners area.

Practically all major cities in our civilization have gone through the destruction and rebuild cycle; most more than once.

8.29.05 Given the state of affairs facing New Orleans in the next couple months

Chlorox (Clx) is a buy. One of the first things you learn in disaster response is the value of a germicide and water treatment agent (chorine or high test hypochlorite).

8.28.05 Black Rock Playa: Microcosm for the current land issues in the Western US

The dueling energy firm proposals (Sempra vs. a green consortium) will need up to 16,000 (for starters, really) acre feet a year of water.

Spoke with a fisheries biologist last week on the Olympic peninsula. Stated that the expected salmon run of 400k was about 4000 instead. Fwiw.

The NV State water engineer will hold an open meeting next week regarding shortages in the western-central boom area.

The situation down south is getting bad. The dire straits of the Colorado Plateau and River will now force draws against the Virgin River. The environmentalists will likely challenge this one. Could upset the entire region framework agreement. With Senator Henry Reid (Senate Minority leader, D.-NV, son of a Nv. miner and longtime champion of Nv mining issues and leader of the framework - sitting in his easy chair recovering from failing health, the discussions could wind as crooked as the Virgin Valley badlands...

The hot money/foreclosure conference will not be in either vegas/boston/phoenix/SF/ as previously planned, but instead has been rescheduled in New Orleans next week...

This posturing must occur, there is no way the pollution credits want this market to open without some initial skirmishes to define the topography and positions.

the strategic petroleum reserve at $3.00/gallon, does that speed up or slow down military action against Venezuela/Iran?

Amazing really, the public buys the oil at a few dollars on the barrel. When they are forced to buy it back (from whom) for $60 a gallon they feel like they got a great deal!

The people wanted economic independence, so they came to California for the gold and to Nevada for the silver

Miners needed wood, so they came to Lake Tahoe for the sugar, ponderosa, and jeffrey pines.

The miners then had too much water, so Sutro built the tunnel to dewater the Comstock.

So the water from the Tahoe was diverted from the Truckee River, which flows out of Tahoe, into the valleys to allow agriculture.

Of course, the government needed a piece of the action so they pushed the Newlands project to systemize the agriculture and institute and institution.

Then the fights and skirmishes allowed the government to push the Bureau of Reclamation onto the rolls in 1902.

After long series of negotiations, the water was appropriated and adjudicated and distrusted. And the fights calmed down.

Can agriculture hang on against the backdrop of new housing springing up like sagebrush after the march rains?

Or is the Hearts of Gold Cantaloupe Festival the only remnant of the region's gold mining past that will remain?

Yet, the people still come. This time chasing gloried economic independence via house flipping.

The senior water statesmen, Sen. Harry Reid (D) - Nev., suffered a stroke last week.

Will the framework hold, as Vegas scurries to de-water the rest of the state to prop up her dreamy facade?

to learn my role as a coach. Quite an eye opener for this ignorant fool. Methinks the menfolk had it easier back in the day when they were confined to the waiting room.

While waiting for the teller to do her majic, the person next to me got a little flustered because she needed a temporary check, and the teller told her "We don't do that anymore'. Then another woman told her tale of woe about losing her ATM card. I suggested she just get an emergency one made up here in the branch. The teller piped up: "Oh, we don't do that anymore". Upon further query she admitted it would be between 10-12 business days before a new card was issued. So, I amended my request from payment in large bills to include 40$ in half dollars. This always gets them flustered, as the teller invariably chirps she doesn't have enough in her drawer and I them explain how she will have to check with the merchant drawer and then make change at every other teller station until she gets me the denomination I request, as I asked "Do you still make change?". And yes, I managed to pull another 40% silver half-dollar out of circulation. Who said there's no free lunch, er, snack?

re: viability of pyrolosis destruction vs "the all new and improved incinerator" argument in the city of the angels, ca?

get your pb, hg and benzo furan allotments now chillums.

Somebody sent me an article with this title and asked what I thought. Here is what I thought:

The first thing I look for in any story is the source, and the backers, and who has what to gain by what line is currently promulgated. In this case, CNN and Turner and his interests.

When my parents lived in Atlanta I visited and on one occasion took the CNN tour. Essentially, they bragged about their blue screens and teleprompters and feeds of the party line across the world via fiber optic in a manner of minutes. In other words, they stated they were one of the largest massagers in the world of public opinion – purveyors of doublespeak and vanguards against thoughtcrime - via their position to intently and instantly transmit what they wanted you to hear instantaneously across the globe. The blue screen rooms featured actors benefited by cosmetic surgery reading the ‘news’ fed via the teleprompter while they pointed to a blank screen – there was actually nothing on the screen they pointed to, the entire presentation was a mirage married to whatever spewed out over the wire.

Regarding ownership and the interests served: basically, Ted and Jane are fine examples of a modern day abortion parading as a service to our fine fellow citizens. I do not support their views, or glad-handing on behalf of the global socialists or any of their products. Thankfully, their products and market share have steadily gone down the drain along with their image. As much as I hate to see people suffer, their divorce and obvious schism within Jane’s psyche over the last couple years is simply manifestation of a deeper sickness within; that same sickness presented 24/7 by wolf blitzer and company over the years via our airwaves. So, the CNN fade into irrelevancy is expected and natural and hence I don’t pay too much attention to their drivel, similar as its always been, but less applicable by the day.

Moving from presentation of the article to substance, I found none. Any clown that cites Alan Greenspan as a credible director of the current economic situation only admits their undying service to the continuing smoke and mirrors campaign that now serves as the shell of what was once , at minimum , lip-synching service to domestic and international financial policy.

Alan Greenspan was rightly mocked by Ayn Rand decades ago as a social climber and lo and behold he and Andrea did not disappoint in their projected career path. Acting as the figurehead spokesperson of the moneyed kingmakers interest controlling the holdings of the private federal reserve banks, he has generally soiled himself with damnable obfuscation and adorned himself with the pedantic jewelry of a 1k plated shell housing nothing yet an empty space except for the bitter pill of service to the overlords which he will ultimately use as the suicide solution.

In a manner of speaking, the CNN fairy tale serves Greenspun up as authority whilst the only names with perhaps scraps of authority left via their projected wizard-of-Oz-to-be position as head-fed-head such as McTeer and Bennie “helicopter money” Bernanke are nowhere to be found. Bennie baby has already stated that the fed must inflate or die as they would much rather push hyperinflation along the string as opposed to the deflation bearing down harder than a locomotive wrong way on the tracks into the station.

There is no conundrum on the bond rates. The yield curve is flattening. The fed has absolutely no impact on the long term rates as shown by a record 2.5% increase in the fed funds rate over the previous quarter. The thirty year bond has shown its own independence and has directed only downward over the recent history. As the yield curve is flattening and the 30 year bond has shown the way into further malaise.

That is - looks like the next worldwide recession is about 8 months out. The fed knows their enemy is deflation, not inflation. Since we have already seen that their stated tool to fight inflation – short term interest rates is a completely irrelevant and useless red-herring, we must realize that they are actually battling deflation and only have two arrows in their quiver: 1) They must devalue the USDollar by cranking out greenbacks by the billion; and 2) War. The fed and bankers worldwide are deathly afraid of deflation since it will remove the only reason for their current existence – loaning a product (US debt) that is rapidly becoming useless. Nobody actually gives their money to the banks anymore, that trust went out the window 70 years ago and never came back except for a brief period of time in the 80s when Volker drove up the fed funds rate and certificates of deposit shadowed shallowly.

I watch container ships come into this country through the Golden Gate laden down with goods made in china. These ships, flying under Norwegian and Panamanian flags, leave empty except for the commodities that typically represent the economic output of third world countries such as fruits vegetables and grains and cotton destined to actually become a product in another country where we have previously exported our means of production. Millions of real production jobs are gone from this country, forever. The only growth industry is derivative peddling and government. These both require current warfare. In fact, one of the largest exports in this country is hazardous waste.

Natural gas is up 45% over the last year and you know what has happened with the price of oil. Where were the ecumenicists warning of the oil price spike a year and a half ago? Oh yeah, calling for new lows…

The US dollar shows complexity. I hope that it has just finished the second wave correction and has just turned down again into wave three which should last about 2-3 years. The scarier chart shows that the dollar is still in the wave I impulse down.

The US Govt tipped its hand when it raised the hackles over the Chinese state oil company, CNOOC, in its bid to buy Unocal. Essentially, the US Govt stated its fine for the foreign banks to engorge themselves with US Treasury debts, but that should they actually try to spend the fanciful US Dollar, they would find it actually purchases nothing. At that point the ChiComs finally, after years of feet-dragging – de-pegged the renminbi from the USD. Coincidence, eh? How much time do you think CNN spent on that little tidbit?

The people of our great county are fully willing to go deeper into debt to finance their lifestyle, but most the rest of the world is not. Especially some of those countries (the few left with whom we have a positive trade balance) who we count on to buy are production (what little remains) simply fall apart when their price of energy – in asia mostly imported over 90% of supply – exceeds their ability to borrow US paper.

Meanwhile the common people in our country are absolutely ecstatic that nobody can afford to buy a home anymore b.c. their price of their equity has made them all ‘rich’. When the rest of the plebiscites realize that and begin to dump their collateralized mortgage obligations – ahem – ‘leverage’ the real fireworks begin as the Fannie and Freddie derivatives unwind.

Has BA begun the 40 and 50 yr mortgages yet? Remember the ‘generational’ bridge loans on Japanese property in the 80s?

Well, that’s my review on the first 20 or so words of the article. It got much worse from there. Probably a Wharton or yale graduate who has numbed and dumbed so completely that any possible presentation of cogency is simply not an option. Calling the increase in oil price inflationary tips shows either his rudimentary understanding or his objective and masters; possibly both…

And it wasn't just the Japanese but the italians, and germans, and chinese, and cree and sioux and ....

Let's not be coy and confuse the Alien Enemy Act of 1798 ( 50 USC 21-24 ) with the executive orders of the 19th and 20th centuries.

One of my other favorite Internment camps is Ellis Island - under the statue of liberty.

You have to look it up yourself since the Freedom of Information Act requests have been uniformly and typically vapid.

The congressional reports have been an order of magnitude worse, criminal in some minds.

Looks like nobody wants to control the commercial electronic transfer of cyber-digits after all!

The US Army had been trying to develop a tungsten bullet as a replacement for lead. Looks like it won't happen. Not too easy getting a price on this metal, only published every two weeks!

7.29.05 The beauty of a country's coinage is inversely related to the strength, moral and otherwise, of that country

Fascinating relationship. We all understand to some degree the phenomena that the strength and vitality of a county is presented in its coinage.

The interesting note is that the beauty of the coinage is actually inversely related to the relative strength of our country.

There are numerous coins documented throughout numismatics which portend the pervasive zeitgeist of the national consciousness. The Standing Liberty Quarter shows Liberty guarding the portals of liberty with a shield following the ravages of WWI is but one in a string of examples. The barber coinage and Lincoln penny reverses show the prominence and strength of American farming and commodity markets at the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century.

Examining some of the uglier coins our country has produced, let' start at the start - the 1794 Silver Dollar. An absolute aesthetic dollar comforted only with the caveat that our minters were quite new to the game in 1794. The obverse, featuring perhaps the definitive example of how not to feature woman completely denigrates any possibility this coin had at approaching pleasantness. With liberty's hair not flowing as much as proving a stringy exhibition of a tangled medussan mess, wiser heads prevailed and her caricature of a woman lasted no more than 18 months. The reverse was not better, this strangled rubber chicken replication of our national bird fouled the back side of the coin well into the next decade.

I will always remember that. Such a gently little sensation, barely noticeable - was such a powerful moment that will leave an indelible memory on my psyche.

Another nail in the coffin of a free society. This will cause indescribable pain over the life, such as it is, of the next generation. I contacted by congressman, again. Some good that did. How 'bout you?

The CODEX provisions alone, not too mention all the crap that doubtlessly was added just before the midnight vote, will wreak health havoc for decades. Better buy up the international health and drug companies, while fighting them on every other level, and devise the means of production for your current herbs and health supplements.

of the drought and increasingly perilous outlook for the water supply vis a vis the million+ new homes in the last few years.

Got to have a handy excuse should the golf course parch a bit and yield (again) to the tumbleweed and the no interest loan/quintaplex speculation prove a bumpy washboard road in the rearview mirror precariously jangling off the ol jalopy of dreams...

They put a private placement a couple days ago but did not generate much interest.

First time I heard one for a 40-year term, though I knew it was coming. Why not go into debt for 100 years and pass it on to future generations. Every county that carries a deficit has done that anyway with the public bill...

Once in a while I fill out consumer surveys. Since I have asked many people to fill out surveys myself in the past, I don't mind doing it once in a while. Besides, I can complete the forms really fast because I usually make up most the answers, and they pay a few bucks anyway.

The survey company sends the results at the end. This particular survey reports that:

7% of households have one person actively involved in collecting stamps, and 27% have somebody collecting coins.

Then the other day I was walking to the pool. Looked down in the dirt and picked up an 18K gold ring with two diamonds and a ruby (and at this point I actually believe they are real).

Idaho and Utah are beginning to exert increasing pressure on the Nevada Department of Environmental Protection to decrease the fugitive airborne mercury emissions that reach their states. Looks like Nv is beginning to acquiesce and may soon make the voluntary program - only pertaining to the majors - mandatory and also require the smaller miners to comply with mercury measurements. Neither real easy nor cheap.

What I once celebrated as Independence Day, is now the most depressing day of the year. Eleven years ago, under duress and after diligent negotiations that could just not pan out given the timeframe I was operating under, I presented my state drivers license as ID. First time I ever did that. Previously I had successfully always made the case that as long as 1. I was not operating a motor vehicle and 2. Had not been presented with evidence that the officers has just cause to consider that I had potentially committed a crime, the case law provided that I simply only needed to verbally identify my person.

Though I had the arguments in my favor, and had already swayed one of the three officers - with another neutral, the third had it bad for me and was perfectly willing to put me in custody for 24 hours without charges, such as was the law at the time. Though I was willing to again spend the weekend in jail, my circumstances dictated that I attended some other business, and I surrendered my ID under verbal protest. Though I didn't go to jail, I have not been a freeman since that day.

And how quickly things have gained speed on the downside since that hot afternoon...

But as a point in fact, I was walking from a building to my car. Someone in the bldg. next door reported me as a suspicious person. The other two cops were sated when I produced a key to the bldg. The jerko cop focused on the fact I refused to hand over id for the better part of an hour, and was gaining traction in my argument. So he upped the stakes and I folded...

the price goes up but the reported use per year
continues to decline.
kinda like gold.

not sure, but i dont think GCU.V ever got Ga in ( by ) production at either of the two US properties...

well, wadya know. no longer than a month after my noodling on the lack of gallium gnus does canyon release come out with some ( positive, at that ) results - sort of - in the press.

First I sought the elusive metal at the nearest and dearest bastion of value and style: the mall...

Not being one to give up easily, I decided to continue my ever vigilant hunt for the elusive metal.

Though as a point in fact, my search didn't commence post haste. (Hey, I had some laundry to do)

The formulation for the next step in my path along the virtuous, melodious if mythical path required careful analysis and thought - no drat greywacke stone would be left unturned. After many moons of careful deliberation, weighing each lustrous alternative to the nearest significant digit microgram, my thoughts continued to coalesce as the dull grease-laden stains on the cooks smock whenst the obvious pierced the very essence of my being - I had to travel to a LARGER MALL!

Now that I realize this realization and cognizance of the depth to my new found wisdom may have thrown the bearings of a lesser engine, my due diligence wavered not from the illuminated palladium path. Though this step would require travel outside the relative safety and comfort zone of my suburb, the powerful mettaline draw pulled true and weighty.

Only through meditation heightened by the presence of powerful relics such as the 1916-D mercury dime could my full clear understanding, nay oneness, with the next necessary steps resonate in sine as with the full will of the gnomes who have previously blazed trails and tunnels deep and righteous afore me - I would have to get off my duff and visit another zip code; so i did...

they are flailing about, trying to beat each other over the head, but mostly just unsteadying the boat.

Last week i tried to take a picture of it.
The NYPD in the front door well told me he would confiscate my camera.

That didn't happen at any of the other financial bldgs i visited, or any other building in any other city in the usa.

I didn't realize the level of barricades and police presence in the financial district that had become permanent.

rather depressing, what level of occupation the New World Yorkers are willing to accommodate in their streets...

The Sierra have perhaps well over %500 the snowpack that the Rockies currently hold. Was not a pretty picture. The Colorado Compact is only as good as the water pressure in the pipes. The Nv miners have to compete with more and more people at the drinking fountain as negotiating table every year. And the stakes just keep getting higher.

starts to tell the listening audience of moneytalk that precious metal stocks have a place in the investment portfolio of today. bubbly cut him off and ended the show mid sentence.

funny that!

(though, the part on the Erie Canal was fascinating. Perhaps someday you will remember it was mercury who told you about the coming mega project - The New American Canal - that will save the US from complete destruction.

A) The increase in numismatic price also carries a premium that the market is foretelling - the risk of holding your wealth in coins, as proxy for metal as further proxy for anything not tracked by the great database of mammon, is increasing with each passing month as:

1. The political hacks carry out their orders as a foot soldier and proffer legislation of the most insipid variety. To wit, note California Assembly Bill 1178.

I still remember when they passed the pawnbroker bill, wasn't all that long ago. Nobody cared cuz they didn't deal with those types. (Curious though, is there a Check 'N Go in your neighborhood)?

Parenthetically, would you provide your fingerprints to a state and/or national database in order to buy or sell physical or numismatic gold or silver?

The exemptions that prevented the rest of us who buy and sell collectibles are falling like the paper dominoes they are. The original bill set up the database and bureaucracy, now they will simply keep exempting us into the need to supply a fingerprint for the database or risk selective prosecution. The exemptions were written years ago, they just need to be trotted out one degree at a time. Nothing new there.

How many legislative defeats will the pushers of mandatory fingerprint submission/database entry for all precious metal holders take? Two, maybe three. In other words, WHAT opposition?

Remember all the outcry about the National ID passed last month? No, me neither. It took over a decade to get that passed in most other english speaking countries.

Remember the national 'Know thy Customer Act'? They tried just a couple times, and failed to pass that one only due to some serious full court press by the few of us paying attention. Of course, all that AND THE KITCHEN SINK was wrapped in one burrito onto patriot I. We Lose. Again and Still.

Do you actually think they wrote the patriot act in the timeline proffered? Gee, with all this increased efficiency I hear about maybe they will actually pass patriot II before the next exogenous event.

2. RFID chips in all commodities and things goods and monies EXCEPT tendered credits of debt, usury and slavery from the salvage of pain that a free man feels in times such as these. Really think that will take until 2014?

Nowadays a much too sizable percentage of people buying coins simply refuse to learn the skill sets necessary to provide some proficiency in the hobby and cottage industry - grading. The laze and capitulate and defer any decision making to someone they will pay - the third party grading services (PCGS, NGC etc). The Third Party Grading services shall greatly accommodate such banality and simply incorporate the RFID into the slab and otherwise beautify the current bar code across the current slabs emanating from their factories of plastic bondage, simply representing the once quite repressible but now ubiquitously reprehensible condition that the once great citizens of our country find ourselves in - the state of denial, implausible or otherwise. After all, they already have the infrastructure and database in place; and they already have the necessary percentage of hobbyists and wannabe speculators in the plastic market.

No, they won't make holding gold and silver illegal. They won't have to as long as they can use GPS to track its place in your home, business, or safety deposit box - secured by your fingerprint as proxy for subservient approval.

This is what the coin action since 2000 speaks to me: They market will schism. Those who fingerprint/salivate/fornicate/ and generally provide whatever specie of human residue and DNA is required to hold onto their meager possessions, as metals or otherwise - and those who won't.

That's right. The future is here. The army of one, or 3/4ths given the state of affairs and resultant prospective enlistee interest, is trained to carry out the ultimate order: Elimination of native resistance.

Note, the enemy in the training exercise/slash/propaganda film is not the nazis/russians/serbians/chicoms/osamabenzakarirushdieayatollahjones/terrieiristes/insurgents. Nope, the enemy of the future is the militia (plainly stated in second sentence), i.e. You and I, all that is necessary and remaining - if only ethereally tethered - the tattered remains of our once free state.

BTW, Mare Island was the Original United States Navy Base on the west coast. The directive has apparently changed.

If the troops don't start hunting me down in the street for another 9 years - lucky for me!

I had originally intended to write that the that the increase in numismatic premium had reflected greater interest by both new hobbyists, investors and speculators as previously suggested before the recent rash of modern coinage redesign beginning in 1999; and furthermore both presented and foreshadowed higher precious metal prices, especially for silver as it caught a glimpse and slightest whiff of monetization. However, upon further reflection - the inflections shone across the complicated fields of pattern and design splattered with splintered ultra violet waves and other more subtle energies subsequently hidden in the incuse folds and weaves of both time and design presented an alternate, albeit much darker, series of realizations.

Namely - The day is getting shorter. And with it, the length of the light band forcing through obfuscating layers of static zeitgeist gathers a reddish lens within the silver runners...

6.5.05 hope; could they create the Hope diamond? Would any know it a counterfeit?

The continued strong demand for million dollar pieces, several hundred-dollar-dollar pieces, and pennies -all in aggregate across a broad board - suggest a continuation of the strong bull market. Yet, the wall of worry for those already invested continues to grow.

Moreover, the silver sometimes serves as a liner note for the leading edge of much darker cloud, and I am quite convinced that this is the case today. When the men who curse the light, are right - those proverbial clouds portend the winter of humanity...

These series are where I concentrate most of my silver coin collection. I spent some *more* time checking into how these type sets have done over the last 18 months by comparing sample sets from published gray sheet, coin magazines, and eBay action. Generally, the coin collectors have been cautiously anxious for over a year now that the hot coin market is due for a major cooling off. Yet, it has not happened. Rather like the beleaguered fans of metals, mining, and real estate: the run has been so strong that the time is nigh for regression to the mean, if only for gravitational reasons, no? Thing is, nobody ever presents what more viable holding vessel/spittoon for caching the fetid USD is than hard assets.

With the exception of the key 1877 which is up just a couple %, and some semi-keys such as 1908-s and the other low mintage 1860's and 1870's; the series is flat, which is better than the minor series slump which ended in 2004.

The key dates and semi key dates in higher grades have done well, especially the earlier dates. The mid range dates and semi-keys which had been down in 2003 have sprung back with a vengeance. eBay bids are up to %50 over retail quotes on the early s-mints. Shows strong marketplace based on very high numbers of entry collectors.

After remaining incredibly flat during the bull run beginning in 2000, the early flowing hair and draped bust series have seen some nice appreciation across all grades in the previous 24 months. The appreciations are muted for the series starting with the liberty cap, though nicer grades have fared better. The 'Arrows' series is flat with little action; some mild appreciation returns to the 'no arrows' series.

Generally the series had performed similar to the half dimes: overall slightly down, with the exception of some MS grades. The key 12-s had been flat in lower grades and well off prices for the 60 and 65 grades. This date, along with the rest of the keys and semi-keys have preformed outstandingly well in the last two years. As they say, but it when nobody else wants it - you would have done quite well.

The biggest gainers in this series since 2000 had been the MS65 grades. However, the series has performed much like the liberty nickels of late and have seen very strong price performance. However, the common dates post 1927 in grades have seriously lagged the performance of mint state pieces.

This series has continued to under perform the larger market. Prices are quite flat and interest has been low. However, in just the last couple months two new nickel designs have been put into circulation. As such, this might be the time to salt away a few of the lower minted pieces in higher grades, and complete mint state sets as interest in the broader series could gain new action over the next few years - catching up with the broader market.

These series have performed analogous to their half dime counterparts. However, the seated series beginning in 1873 has shown much higher support and interest than the higher grades of the series, or the other series as a whole.

The design has been very strong in all series in the previous 24 months. The fickle praise of Fortuna has graciously sprinkled the garden of my previous recommendation to acquire this design and series and just fruits are now reaped. Nice action and appreciation in all dates and grades though the later more common fare has lagged accordingly.

One of my favorite series, though the pricing and demand has always been somewhat schizophrenic and the series has underperformed the broader sector in the past half-decade. The exception has been a stronger and recent demand for overdate varieties and very high grade early and middle years to complete registry sets. What money had been allocated to barber coinage might now could do worse than find its way into accumulating semi-keys and complete sets of this series over the next 12-24 months.

An ugly coin of an ugly man has fittingly shown little interest since the beginning of the recent coin bull. However, the registry mania has slopped over some mild price strength for the Gem Uncirculated early years. Also, the recent demand for toned coins has garnered quite a bit of speculation for certain choicely hued specimens. Some room here may remain, though dastardly cheats and shills provide dangerous surf.

Stronger demand and price appreciation for these series across the board. Many of the nicer specimens are getting harder to find, might be worth some consideration.

The Barber Quarters have performed similar to the Barber Dimes: nice appreciation and action for all grades and all dates. The previously mentioned lack of supply in 2003 portended the recent run-up and I thank the coinage demi-gods. The only losers have been the naysayers, and those chumping on the newbies by engineering and proffering counterfeit and altered mint marks for the 1913-1915 dates. Though future performance might remain strong, or even continue to increase, the earlier quarter series could prove a better value at this time; consequently suggest consideration of some rotation there.

Like the other quarter series, the SLQs, especially the early semi-keys have done quite nicely. The earlier dates (sunken) have appreciated rather nicely and pretty well across the board whereas the later dates are somewhat weaker in price. The previously noted lack of supply of nicer specimens in 2003 again predictably helped the most recent strong action. Nevertheless, I continue to pursue this lady with cautious abandon.

Again, - as previously predicted in 1999, the Washington series had a great run beginning with the new state quarters beginning in 1999. One could have made 300% -400% ROI with rolls of the early editions, risking only inflation and opportunity costs. Of course that opportunity is long gone. Yet the appreciation of the 1999 and 2001 silver mint sets continue to do exceptionally well. Perhaps this experience bears keeping in mind when considering price impacts to other series with impending design changes such as the nickel. (Moreover, I have long believed the penny will either be changed or eliminated altogether as the 100th anniversary of the current design comes up; far and away the longest running design of any US coinage). However, I believe new and dumb money is chasing performance here, notwithstanding the best intentions of grandmothers, ex-beanie babiers, kiddies and shut-ins scarfing up the trash from coin vault on the telly. Third party grading services continue to flood the market with recently dipped coins, and the holder of such may turn into slabbagger-holder as these coins, if they were not properly treated after acetone bath, will now start to turn that ugly brown around the rims. Caveat emptor.

Should one spend the time to learn these series, and the myriad die varieties and mutants, one can continue to do very well. However, the task is not for he newly initiated nor the faint of time and money.

This series had been flat for a couple years until 2003 when lower grade coins were given a high price boost in pretty much all dates; a great unexpected benefit for those holding any amount of this series as junk silver. Further, recent interest and demand in the series has only sired greater joy for those invested.

Although the proof prices have been flat, almost every other grade and date has shown very nice appreciation. Some of the MS60 and 65 dates are AGAIN up 20 to 40% in the previous 18 months. Perhaps the best performing type coin of the last 2 years along with the Washington quarter. Supply of nice specimens is still not out there on the shelf in most stores, but has been increasingly proffered through internet auctions. Nevertheless, the easy pickings may likely have been shorn from this tree. Hence, suggest a look elsewhere, holding the fort, while tending other gardens.

The performance of this series marks continuation of the pattern throughout the entire bull run: To writ, although the early key and semi-key dates have done very well, much of the later dates in the set are flat or down just a percentage point or two from the comparative numismatic standpoint, though the inverse in bullion prices have raised the water hosting all boats, hoisting to a higher position in the relative sea of silver. And the adage as song of praise remains the same, - you can’t fault this beautiful woman who ages more gracefully than most.

The flood waters of counterfeits from China continue to rise unabated. Better trust BOTH your eye and hand.

Similar to Walking Liberty half, in that the market has been somewhat a continuation of earlier established patterns. Though, the altered surface and accelerated toning affliction seems to be spreading.. In part, because this is the entry point series for many new collectors. The Binion collection also spiced things up a bit, as previously written herein.

yowza! This series completely reversed the well established vector and key and semi-key dates, especially in the middle grades, have completely broken out and provided some very strong appreciation for the lucky ones. Alas, missed out to the degree I was only market weighted and could have cut myself a bigger slice of the pie, especially since in hindsight, I should have known better - though for dark reasons as I shall expound upon in the verses yet to come...

Please note my observations must be somewhat general considering the large number of coins sampled and of course are just my observations based upon the 25 or so coin stores I have visited in the last few years, price guide samples, and a fair smattering of ebay looks...

About four years ago I thought would be a great time to start building type/series sets and salting away some ‘junk’ coins. By and large the strategy has worked quite well and I see no reason to stop the collection. The coin market is generally stable and fluid; has been giving a decent return on investment - especially compared to all other investment arenas over the time period; and has the bullion value built in as an inherent price floor. Perhaps the greatest detriment to the coins is the time it takes to learn what you are doing and what constitutes a good value; second would be the price spread on bid/ask. Building a relationship with a small corps of dealers is time well-spent.

The nickels have generally shown little interest and have seen prices deteriorate;

Early barber coinage, especially in lower grades and in the dime and fifty-cent denomination have done very well;

Perhaps the mercury, and morgans deserve the most time dedicated to understanding the series market. Personally, I also like extremely high grade pennies at this point in time, as well as the entire barber series. Perhaps a good time to lighten up on some of the Washington quarters and some of the overvalued ‘registry sets’.

I would very much appreciate other opinions out there based upon what you have seen in the market place. Good luck and have fun,

The 1913 nickel (bought for 4.15 Million and displayed at Long Beach for a few days) and the bust of the Ohio pension fund coin scam have been getting heavy national news. Any press is good press, eh? Maybe...

http://www.rgj.com/news/stories/html/2005/06/02/100856.php?sps=rgj.com&sch=MVN&sp1=rgj.com&sp2=MasonValleyNews&sp3=MasonValleyNews&sp5=MasonValleyNews.com&sp6=news&sp7=local_news

Not sure your objective, but getting a quick %10 in a fortnight on a couple staid service and utility matrons might be somewhere on the list...

Only 23% nationally? The mania has a long way to go still, just to catch up with the San Francisco Bay area average which hit 70% last month. This would be a bad time for a large earthquake. In 89 the price trajectory was absolutely nothing like it is today. The earthquake of 1906 was actually timely, as the silver boom in Tonopah and the Gold Boom in Goldfield were hot n heavy and rebuilt the city immediately. A large quake today would set so many nouveau land barons into arrears, that I don't estimate the ripples would be ones of gentle solace...

My guess is Clark county, Nv. is way above 23% given all the specs locking in construction and moving along the blvd. of dreams to Maricopa County, Az. I know washoe county is around 40%.

How about 40 and -50year mortgages. France has its 40-year bond and Japan had the 'generational' mortgage.

I don't understand why they aren't pushing these as another "financing option".

( ?yet? )

that should be good for another double...

If you plan on consolidating your school loans this year, do it before the new rates kick in on July 1. You can only consolidate your student loans once, so you want to do it at the lowest interest point possible. THEN the question for you to consider is, will rates go up or down? Show your work.

(perhaps their reporting system maintains a maximum reportable number of 20 in the access database).

The short term thinking WALL streeters oversold a quarterly glitch of the PALL filterers and gave a nice entry point IMO.

You might remember my previous descriptions of his efforts to overhaul the Mining Act of 1872,

Following on the footsteps of competitor Lennar, who after several years, began building new homes on the Former Mare Island Naval Station.

Roughly 1/3rd of Mare island is now open to the public again, the other 2/3rds are still under investigation and/or remediation.

The DOD has closed over 11,000 bases, facilities, or installations in the 20th century.

Now, take a look at BRAC 2005 to determine how you can benefit from the rejuvenation of the particular community.

Unfortunately the competition for nice places to pan has only gotten more dangerous.

Those tending plantations in the seeps and springs had previously rather unfettered access along the dirt roads and ruts. The mexican and white gangs had a commensal, if uneasy relationship dividing up the turf - both gardens and meth production areas in the flats. Regrettably, competition has gotten more fierce as :

2. The chinese have established a network of opium production plots along with and are also gaining market share on transportation and retail supply channels thanks to the new and large influx of Afghan sources re-established by our govt.

Since the actual drug consumption rates have not kept up with supply (except for the insidious meth plague) the competition for transportation and vendor routes has established a new level of violence.

About the only thing the occasional panner has going for him is that he too is now usually an outlaw on the forest, and thence the fragile code amongst the thieves guild allows some leeway to land access. Especially since the federates are much more disposed to chase the feeble planner away than take on the organized crime organizations (and their unending supply of funding to state and national political activities). As such, the panner serves as general purpose dupe/scout/lookout/early warning signal for the crime syndicate.

Bodes ill for the stonefruits though. Pity the pitted ones. The apricots have been outstanding, too bad the crops are lacking.

The cherries are not the best; even then they will come at a hefty premium. Last months rain followed by the warming in the last three days have split the skins and will ruin a high percentage of what remains.

Looking for increased incidents of Valley Fever this year, along with the first expected case of human west nile virus on the west coast.

Two weeks ago Hong Kong had almost 3inches rain in one day, and this is still the dry season.

Many restaurants require a minimum gratuity charge on a party of 15 or more. They do this because they are transferring risk onto the buying party. That is, if one or two tables or two or three stiff the waiters for a tip, they can recover on the other tables they turned in that time. However, when they spend a large portion of the night serving a large party, they cannot afford to shoulder the risk of that party not paying a gratuity. So, in California, and other states that require a sales tax on that gratuity, you are better off to negotiate with the restaurant before hand. State that if they do not automatically charge a gratuity (the sales tax is charged on that gratuity) then you will guarantee a 21% tip. Both legal and ethical.

Course, most had the same thoughts right before the %40-900% run-ups on the stuff.

I put mine on the line; Today offering some economic underpinning of such. Ain’t hearing much of that on the squawk box, internet, am or the times.

Want a couple more: FRO and CTWS look kinda tasty here. Then again, there’s a whole sackfull ‘o reasons against the support premise. Many of the gold stocks are looking not too dissimilar from the point BEFORE the %40-900% run…

I even talked w/somebody I figure might know. So either he and I are just as clueless as usual, or abx is biding their time. There has been QUITE a bit of developments on the northern nv power front in the last 18 months. Perhaps barrick is waiting a few of those out. Or, their release may have been a feint and they are backing one or more of the other horses who already are known entities to the local tracks and oddsmakers.

Also, should I sit on the board I would be taking a look at – buying power for what?, producing more profitable gold in this environment? Why?

A couple juniors playing in the northern part of the state have made a couple large miscues imo, and I might consider stealing their marbles and worrying about how to get the energy/water after the property is sewn up…

Rain and water everywhere, just not where it needs to be to make everybody happy.

In Nevada the Humboldt river, the main watercourse and watershed in the worlds third largest gold producing area is flooding this week due to rainstorms in the last few days over a large water pack. Although there may appear a large amount of water available when the river is flooding, there actually is not near enough to meet all the water delivery promises made by the politician. Not too dissimilar from the financial situation vis-a-vis social security, medicare, and several other hundred programs and the guaranteed benefit pension plans promised by the management of USX, GM, Delta, Continental, United, Tyco, Enron and additional future hundred of examples.

“Not that much water is making its way through the various governmental jurisdictions between the mountains and the lake. “They are diverting the water for irrigation and are taking the opportunity to fill the reservoirs.” - Eric Johnson, manager of the Nevada Department of Conservation and Natural Resource’s Fallon Region Headquarters, which covers Walker Lake. (5.12.05 Fallon Star Press)

Not only is there not enough water in Northern Nevada to meet all the current promises, the richer half of the state is now implementing measures to take what little there is so that the fountains may still flow at the Vegas casinos…

So of course the standard casts of clowns crow all over each other promising new promises serving as fixes to the previous promises now serving as problems.

So, will re-establishment of the cotton tariffs against the chinese serve the same function as the steel tariffs a couple years ago. Anybody going-long North Carolina?

Smoot-Haley tariffs didn’t help US come out of depression in the 30’s. WWII, and especially the results thereof, did to some degree; though things didn’t really start picking up until the early 1950’s.

The division of labor crafted over centuries simply cannot support the modern idea that 30% of the current workforce can go on siesta all at once over the next few years allowing everybody to hit the exits at once and escape the retrace through the majical looking glass window between the ages of 59.5 and 65. As such, the economy takes care of itself and the 30yr yield has drawn down taking various and sundry with it such that Various will have to continue working well past her initially planned retirement date and Sundry still has no idea what to do; as the old canards fall flat and new ideas take longer to implement that the proponents had assured. The boomers have also helped themselves, or have been guided by the invisible hand, by simply overextending themselves in the more selfish and prurient pursuit of immediate self gratification and have just not got the job done - saving enough to support themselves with passive income streams.

The boomers in many cases saw themselves sandwiched between two generations, providing retirement planning/health care for their parents while raising their own brood. The next generation will have the added onus of providing some method of financial support for their aging boomer parents as the golden twinned-promises of medicare and social security to ourselves will be seen in the harsh refractory light of trillion dollar deficits no longer supported by assuaging asian labor.

At that point the boomers will look toward continuing their working years past ages previously targeted, such as the plan Various has. Sundry will keep searching alternate means of funding. Sundry is just now, really, taking a hard look at the financial landscape and is demonstrably drawn to the grotesque and moonish geomorphologic features serving as financial obelisks for all to view in the receding twilight of productivity:

- Pension defaults/transfer to Pension Guarantee benefit Plan with lower payouts – if at all

1. A housing market that will keep appreciating to the moons of Saturn whilst providing a strong rental income during the golden years (despite the demographic trend working AGAINST that hope; which is why the border must be maintained in their current sieve0-like rendition) hopefully appended by collateralized mortgage obligations that haven’t defaulted by deteriorating debt service abilities and/or increasingly volatile interest rates; and

2. The promise of medicare and subsidized medicine for every ailment one can dream up between sitcoms.

When Sundry begins to see these two stalwarts shake and tremor as the towers did, there is no choice save look back to the labor pool. Can new rounds of tariffs save enough manufacturing so that Sundry can go back to the office? What if Sundry is now competing for those same remaining jobs as Various, who simply has no other means of income. And they are both competing in a shrinking jobs market with younger and hungrier folks (learning from the plight, hopefully, of those who came before them) that are twenty years their junior, make less money, and compete even harder because they are trying to financially support two or three generations? (At a minimum, look at the number of workers supporting one social security/medicare recipient twenty years ago vs. 10 years from now).

Obviously those equations do not balance. Sundry, the one who has capital but continues to find no financial instrument that can generate a rate of return plentiful enough to support the lifestyle (and medicine) that they have become accustomed to, will have no choice but to pull their capital out of the financial arena (and potentially the mortgates [assuming they did not already sign the reverse mortgage promise]) and put them back into commerce.

That’s right, Sundry will find that rather than compete for a wage job against that eager and increasingly desperate folk 20 years her junior, it is easier to hire that individual to operate a small franchisee or store or other small scale de-centralized market while Sundry provides the capital and business management experience.

As the Keynesian school is increasingly disparaged via default in social programs and deficits, society may devolve over the well trodden economic path back into class segregation. Generation X will increasingly begrudge the boomers for promising trillions of dollars of unfunded mandates to themselves, whilst the boomers begrudge the slackers for their work ethic – forced by necessity, that requires a 75 hour week over three part time jobs that squeezes any opportunities for the older folks.

At this juncture we shall all combined make a heavy decision on which path to take. Those that simply cannot afford to provide the necessities of life – especially a decent roof over their heads- will look around at those holding multiple notes and properties and descend into the fallacy promoted by Ricardo as exploited by Marx – that the landowners are the parasites. That path leads into a thick briar with no escape except a hard fought one where all who leave the briar show the open wounds and scars of the struggle.

Alternately, we could take the other path and revisit the ideas of Say and Smith where we find that the fruits of labor and capital together as refined through yet another refinements of creative destruction (and the every blooming rose of technology) forced by that inventive mother of necessity will allow for a robust and decentralized market place. So much so, that the mercantilist class could reclaim real wealth from the fiat banking system and actually rekindle those supports of the physiocrats and mercantilist schools of the 1700s and 1800s to the degree that honest money may once again flourish.

Allowing the beauty of this eventuality to unfold, along the way, provides a more immediate investment in the following:

- Regional banks and credit union. Someone needs to facilitate this renewed merchant class.

Moreover, there are two sectors who simply cannot lose. No matter how many hour-saving efficiencies are developed and new ideas bourne, there is just no deflationary pressures whatsoever on these sectors, almost as if the invisible had had a little buddy called the meddlesome thumb. Namely, health care and large banking concerns. The price and profits of medicine (though of course not on behalf of the practitioner) and money only goes up; day after day and year after year. So, medical REITS are also attractive here. While the larger financial companies will undoubtedly feel the stress of these increasingly fractal social and economic conditions, and the shock while multiple sundry entities withdraw capital (to the level they are allowed without the oh-so-convenient and coincidentally structured and time tax hits) they may also continue to provide revenue streams over the long term through the undying sponsorship of the meddlesome thumb.

No doubt plenty are prepared for retirement. The majority of this board for starters; though I wouldn’t consider that a representative group. Someone posted a few days ago the median estate of a 55 year old American at roughly $470K. I can accept that figure, with the note underscored by the raised eyebrow that the median figure was promulgated, not the average. How many stats, quotes, and figures are generally provided as a median rather than the more oft quoted average.

At any rate the 470K figure included about 150 in house. So, what will that liquid portion of 320 provide in passive income stream? Enough to say: keep working – it keeps you young. The way I calculate it, that 479 isn’t even half enough. And this after one of the greatest equity bulls in the previous 300 years…

An the marshmallow on the bull float has been a rapid increase in real estate equity. So, everybody is looking like a genius and only need to add that cherry on top of the retirement float, right. Well delusional movements of the crowd typically don’t allow all the right moves, especially as they move up the pyramid of opportunity Practically everyone made money in the stock bull, most made housing $ (on paper), yet everybody is going to nail the next big thing too?.

The housing market, and the immigration policy in this country prove two major hints right now: Take the Money and Run (to Chile, Argentina, Panama, Belize and Costa Rica) where the return on that cashed out house and 320k will provide for a little more financial comfort, if not all the creature comforts of home. That gentle nudge, along with the liberal immigration policies will enable enough benefit subscribers to leave just in time for the new immigrant workers to provide the tax base necessary to service all that remain.

The type of thing that affects regional, state, and national business climate for decades to come.

And some just think it's a clever ploy to get around the 1974 ban on CA coastal shelf oil exploration ban and NIMBY refinery issue.

Pretty much sums it up. With one slight note: The pretty page 2 highlights page w/ nice graphic and bullets presents cash costs figure of 393 oz in 16 pt. font whereas the total costs are in smaller font table format on pg. 12.

Too bad the leach pad at Florida Canyon can be used for Standard, but not for Black Fox.

But hey, maybe they heard the rants, as a significant part of the circular speaks to executive compensation and option warrants...

Mineral reserves are down at three of the four producing projects. Don't lead that, lead the fact from the table that indicates mineral reserves are actually UP over 4,000 ounces in 52 weeks (with a footer to refer to the MII table which shows almost 7 tonne increase between FY 03 and 04).

But egad, that Quimsacocha area in Ecuador looker superlatively splendid, how abouts a .ftp site where I can download some larger shots? If the results don't pan, how about a shareholder timeshare arrangement?

Those heady dating months in 2003 have given way to the realities of a relationship with some high-maintenance ladies.

5.8.05 What portion of the Canadian Securities Act or Business Corporations Act

Requires that the company send Notice of Annual General and Special shareholder meeting via hard copy?

Why not provide a .PDF on the web site with optional mailers for those without internet access? They could provide access codes for shareholders on matters of proxy votes.

And no sooner do I complain about the thickness of the reams and realms of paperwork than do I open the GSS packet of goodies under unmentionable black plastic (most apropos) - and the first sheet is titled "Consent to Electronic Delivery of Documents". Yep, their share action sucks too, but at least its been weighing on their conscience.

That said, their annual report was the best of the bunch, one that actually kept my attention due to all the pretty pictures (yes, all 28 pages of nice glossy garb). No doubt upon the third or fourth invoice from the printer (Last Notice Due!) somebody figured out that the mailer upped their cash costs/oz by three percent and they splurged the twenty minutes to write up the electronic document delivery consent notice. Prolly paid the ghanese children an extra quid each too stuff the envelope, thus building the lead story for next year on their sustainability program...

Because they and the rest of 'em sure aint talking about the grand plans for mergers.

awaiting the next fine comic book installment where all those chief mining honchos talk about how well all that merger activity worked out last year...

Other potential slogans that GATA and the WGC should maintain on the list: considered but dismissed

Would have preferred something like, oh - i dunno - maybe like a dividend or not having the stock price plummet 25% this year...

ah yes, would you like that loss explained in Canadian or US GAAP. One looks a little better...

CBJ: another in a long list of gold producers with expected declines in gold production

Just got back from Music Fest at the Memphis in May celebration. Had a great time. Flew from California to Saint Louis and drove from St. Louis to Memphis with a few friends. We stayed at a casino in Tunica, Northern Mississippi - the Grand Casino (a satellite hotel, actually) run by Caesers/Harrahs. My major complaint with the hotel/casino was the service - absolutely horrible. Great service in Downtown Memphis however. On Beale street, at the Rum Boogie Bar, ran into some important people - marketing promotion folks from Anheuser Busch. Just so happened that I was ordering an Anheuser Busch product when the nice young man decided to pick up my tab and hand out a few The Rendezvous, located down an alley near the Holiday Inn downtown put on a great dry rack of ribs, tasty.

Was amazed at the cheap cost of housing. My buddy has a place - 3bd/2ba with a nice kitchen and attic and decent sized yard; all for $100K last year. told him the same crib in my neighborhood would go for around $410k. But that's nothing; in the county I work (Marin) it would fetch a paltry 850-900K.

4.24.05 Did GM conspire to dismantle the public transportation system in the US?

GM, Standard Oil and Goodyear were convicted and fined $5000 to dismantle the public commuter system such as the Key

System in northern Ca and the red and blue lines in LA along with systems in several other US cities.

People focused on the conspiracy conviction for dismantling of the street car systems, but nobody mentions the targeted destruction of the SF Bay ferry system, at one point one of the nations finest.

Way back when, like ten years ago, when the US unions still thought they could trump NAFTA and save the US manufacturing industry, some of the boyz told me why I needed to only purchase US cars. I would then begin the spiel about GM inventing the suburban commute culture.

Funny, nobody wants to believe in conspiracy – yet so many get convicted on it…

Today we don’t believe in conspiracies and accept that the markets are managed, intervened, positioned, and governed. The FED uses –available tools – to manage what they can, but heaven knows, conspiracy went extinct just about the time the US became the largest prison manufacturer on the planet, with the highest per capita population of any nation.

Convictions for possession, pandering and prostitution house even more of our downtrodden everyday. Let me tell ya’, I am quaking in my winged slippers knowing the day will come when Martha Stewart will be back on the street corrupting the innocent ones.

And of course last week Gen. Sanchez was absolved for Abu Graib while the Pfc., Spec. and Sgt. get the wrap.

For centuries, sailors used hemp rope. Look at the marijuana prohibition posters in the 30’s to see which petrochemical manufacturers wanted a piece of that action.

Biodiesel can be made on the back porch. How many of you can get it at your local filling station?

My family and neighbors begin to worry about the extra $50-75 a week in gas of disposable income variously going down the stormdrain or into the carbon sink instead of the local merchant’s bottom line necessary to keep that 2003 Klondike/Suburban/Blazer on the road.

But hey, at least we defeated that shadowy conspiracy monster. Extirpated form the human condition just like rubella.

And whatever happens, lets elect our team again – they’ve done such a great job -B4 the other side gets a chance…

1. city, county, tribe and citizens all use the land and groundwater for beneficial use (including groundwater)

4. government closes all access to and use of site under penalty of fine and imprisonment (except - of course - for government employees)

5. government says that it shouldn't matter anyway, b.c. they had previously prevented anybody from using the site and they just now found out where the regulations were.

it wasn't that long ago you didn't need a zip code since you could send practically anything anywhere via general delivery

of course the patriot act and subsequent control-of-all-things killed that service; just another function prescribed in the US constitution that has been rough-trodden into dysfunction

so long as they save the pristine nunatak for my sampling core and analytical pleasure

Though their efforts to reclaim ancestral lands put them at odds of miners, the fight was an honorable one. They led through peaceful resistance, refusing to pay usurious tithes to the all demanding bureaucracy and led, as all good leaders do, through example.

Bounded by the Washo, Paiute, Owyhee, Mojave, Goshute, Bannock, Nez Perce, and Fremont among others, the Shoshone had been the strongest tribe with the largest territory. The Ruby Valley Treaty, the refusal of the US Government to honor any part of the law, letter or spirit of that treaty, the refusal of the Shoshone to accept the settlement have formed one of the hallmark US Indian cases.

Their land is some of the most beautiful in the lower US, as I've written here before again and again.

Though the Dann Sisters had been focused on mining issues in the last few years,

their list of activity spans the full suite of Nevada operations - mostly making the mainstream press with their ranching activities and protests.

Of course, the Shoshone have led efforts against activities, both proposed and actual, at the Nevada Test Site and Yucca Mountain

You see, when I most recently brought up the topic of Yucca Mountain to just a few weeks ago resulting from some very recent and important developments, somebody piped up about their intimate familiarity with the nuclear waste issue. Of course, I had assumed that meant at least some cursory understanding of politics surrounding Yucca Mountain, so I queried with an oblique reference to this band Clan Dyken. Now Clan Dyken was a band of hippies who entertained a number of the NTS/Yucca protests in the mid-1980s. The protests would open with a Shoshone Invocation, often lead by a member of the Wells area band of Shoshone, one of the more powerful Shoshone groups. The concert would typically either begin or end with the chants: "Everybody here say Shut the Test Site Down"

I was rather disappointed that the other correspondent found no reason to divulge any knowledge of nevada/Yucca politics over the previous 20 years.

For whatever reason, those old hippy bands loved to play the open Nevada air, Shoshone or otherwise. And without dissent they play most gracious hosts. Again, the tribal leaders would open concerts with invocations, often noting how celebration through the music would help heal the land.

I remember this particular concert fondly (for those who never had a chance to witness the first generation lineup of the psychedelic band Zero with Steve Kimock and John Cippolina )ex-Quicksilver messenger Service [Fresh Air] etc., my condolences. I last say Mr. Cippolina play with the Dinosaurs at a restaurant in Reno, only about 30 of us there, just a few weeks before he passed away.)

(I may still have that handbill for RanchRock somewhere, maybe time to put it on eBay before anybody who cares is long dead)

The music may heal the land, but it requires some help. That RanchRock concert mushroomed at the glorious Pyramid Lake, the medicinal and spiritual homeland of the Paiute. They had been trying for many years, without much success, to cleanup the residue left - unexploded ordnance - from the days when the Department of Navy used the site as a bombing range. All good Things in All good Time, because two days from now - this coming Monday, divers from the Navy and the head of the western US Formerly Used Defense Site project will oversee removal of some of these unexploded shells from the deep, murky, muddy and turning of the Lake Pyramid bottom.

Ironically, my first boss at my initial job in the mining industry was a Shoshone woman who taught me much...

Many great religious artifacts in Hindu, Christian, an Egyptian creeds are golden relics.

Some fellow advocates seem distracted by discussion of the larger, less monetary but more powerful, properties bestowed by our golden friend.

Just as the US Govt. debased our honor by breaking promise, treaty and settlement;

they mock our once honest money by contriving a brass token of ungodly crass ugliness and cheap material yet christen it the 'Golden Dollar'. Without parallel, the monetization that could have served as a final contrition and effort of disabuse, in fact, only further serves to debase what mores and value remained in our system of money - adding the insult on injury by despoiling the generous leadership of this young Shoshone woman who helped our early guides Lewis and Clark open the American West to trappers, miners, farmers, and posters.

The story of the holdout Paiute and their struggles of survival against the backdrop of the damning of the Truckee River and creation of the Newlands District serves as the backdrop for discussing the state of Nevada groundwater in a diminishing probability to serve miner, rancher, and city denizen alike in the Great Basin.

"It is my opinion, and I think history will show, that only dictators and tyrants have and will take control of land that does not belong to them."

And what have we to show for our representation in the daily struggle against the occupying force?

and like anything else associated at least in part with the baby boomer get back to the roots counterculture movement, it has a mixed legacy - if anyone remembers it at all...

4.22.05 Emgold is now conducting public relations campaign to dewatering the Idaho-Maryland Mine

Idaho Maryland was the second largest hardrock goldmine producer in state of California.

That is a good office, but the personnel are only as effective as the Emgold project manager.

Just another example why mining management is so important, more important than anything else.

That's right, the Empire Mine was the largest gold producer in the state of California.

And there is plenty of gold still down there. The shafts are flooded and the mine is now a state park.

So, shall the good people of California support the removal (and dewatering) of these flooded shafts, or shall the property remain politically unproductive?

Over the last year and a half management has been the single largest factor determining the profits and fortunes of the mining companies.

Mining (past, present or future) = pollution, death, curb on growth, reduction in taxes needed to pay out benefits, and will generally poison your children.

That is the story of the week in the neighborhood of the Empire Mine. The latest vessel of the message is the US and State EPA supported by the local award winning rag. The message pouring forth from the vessel is that the parent rock, nay - the former miners that conducted the mineral excavation activity provided by the parent rock, and now supports the nearby construction boom of building thousands of new houses - will poison the neighborhood.

http://www.sacbee.com/content/community_news/el_dorado/story/12756515p-13608015c.html

The press in California carries only the stories about how the mines, past and present, are nothing but a drain on the state economy and a threat to the life of your children.

The mining industry in Nevada has been slowly yet surely turning around their image, thanks in no small part to the assistance of the local rags - samples thereof which I not infrequently put forth for your consideration.

How about this one on the glories of mining past and how it supports the activities, tourism-based or educational, of today:

Naturally, the tandem bicycle works efficiently when one pedals and one steers. The full court press of previous mining glories past, either presented by the Nevada parks excellent interpretive staff of the commercial gloried of Antiques Road Show will not succeed without the corresponding edification of why mining is required today.

http://www.rgj.com/news/stories/html/2005/04/21/97697.php?sps=rgj.com&sch=Business&sp1=rgj&sp2=Business&sp3=Business&sp5=RGJ.com&sp6=news&sp7=business

Of course the biographer wants to present the first-hand story of merit. Not simply react to strings of stories witnessed through the lense of an entirely different culture and position.

groundwater or surface water
pols or people
cities or counties
miners or ranchers

wild horses or grazing cows

when the streets peter out; recognizable addresses of 321 roadkill hiway and 1.618 fibonnaci lane give way to the undulating native topography

and at some distance, the wary traveler comes upon the Andrews pitchfork in the road

bwp posting the 95 Thesis of Zool on the doorpost of the federal reserve bank, 321 roadkill hiway.

ski's partner in irrelevancy giving up the ghost whilst ski emotionally mutters in amazement that his system broke down.

posters leave, yet again swearing off physical and gold stox forever.

traders wishing on a nevadamorningstar just hoping to get back to even.

miners losing money and heading toward BK.

mercurys semi-dormant gleam-in-the-eye glands begin to salivate once again...

The major gold producing nations of the world in a sprint to the bottom - each overachieving in the glorious race of collapsing gold production. Currently, neck and neck, only briefly glimpsing over their shoulder to see fiat catching up...

Of anything I own, or track (well, except for that ol' stalwart INVT.PK of course) this had the best percentage performance today: KMG

They announced that they simply could find no other option for speculation/capitalism/investment/regeneration/support/philanthropy than to buy back their own fragile paper and go into debt betting that the situation gets worse for everyone else and they can buyout both former visions of grandeur and current pretenders for the throne for pennies on the dollar.

The mine had more life, the gold was still there, the miners still wanted to work, the company could have still produced and prospered.

They shut down operations in 1957 because the price of gold was artificially capped (at $35./oz) and they couldn’t turn a profit.

History of the property, parcels and subdivision provide a history and education into western (mexican and californian) real estate law over the last couple hundred years.

Another chapter in the great story of how supplying the early western miner with supplies built the the great Pacific Rim cities of today...

When making an offer on a property, have you used it as a subject-to contingency (must meet minimum score without decrease in price)?

'Speared Bison' variety on the 2005-D is tickling hte fancy, capturing the imagination, and gaining a bid.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=41089&item=3968574394&rd=1

(err, actually they seem to be increasing the number of die varieties per issue...)

In northern Ca, Golden State, one of the few commercial suppliers has lowered the price of their product.

The cost of gasoline and biodiesel are both approaching $3.00US/gallon. But they're approaching it from different directions.

Kisses our spinning orb if but briefly under the assembled gods

how find they our offering today of the leader

The man had essentially unlimited power, access, wealth a billion or so fans and a 2,000 year old support network.

Either he truly cared not for the materialistic. Or he only cared for the power and access and wealth.

The respects paid by the millions suggest the former; a man steeped in good stead.

Others study the faces of pilgrims and see the message taught in every pained crag and dropped tear – the hour is late.

This poem was written by Karol Wojtyla - Pope John PaulII, under the pen name Andrzej Jawien

4.6.05 Rearranging the deck chairs on FNM Titanic?
Mr. Greenspan in a tizzy begging congress to enact structural reforms at Government Sponsored Enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as he sees various positions begin to unravel into a building derivative typhoon.

http://www.reuters.com/financeNewsArticle.jhtml?type=businessNews&storyID=8104629

Times nicely with the planted story (though probably just as true) that FNM has been making up numbers for years.

http://news.moneycentral.msn.com/ticker/sigdev.asp?Symbol=FNM

Of course, the big houses know that congress has no choice but to add more juice to the punchbowl (print more treasury debt), rather than enact anything resembling fiduciary responsibility. (Voila! 50-year mortgages). Thy boys bid up FNM from near 52-week lows after watching the share price plummet 30% and shave over 22Billion off the market cap in the past 6 months.

Meanwhile, at the Bureau of Public Debt, for the first time in US history, the President ridicules the value of treasury bills and the ability of the government to pay off its IOUs.

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/krwashbureau/20050405/ts_krwashbureau/_bc_socialsecurity_wa_1

And yet, after reading the boards here for two years, I have yet to see a mention of the largest real estate scheme in the US: the flipping of properties into trusts at FNM, known as ‘securitization’. Thoughts?

Design site security for 5,000 stationary targets vs. security for 5,000 moving targets.

Oh, yeah, that homework assignment also assumes that you can abate the 5,000 existing sites with one truckload for each site. Granted, Nevada allows triple trailers, so you can use the entire capacity of 3trucks x 18/yds per truck = 54 total yds. Please submit remediation RI/FS/EE/CA/FS study for Hanford showing use of up to three dump trucks.

For extra credit: Show security plan for your triple trailer as it crosses across 2,500 miles of I-64, I-40, I-60, US-50, Grand Army of the republic. Repeat process for I-84, US 93, 95, I-25, 84, 90, 15 10, 20, 25, etc…Repeat process 5,000 times multiplied number of trips. (hint, DOE estimates 54K

Oh, you say you actually meant that you were going to use the open bed trains, not trucks. (only 3,000 trips needed!) And you’ve already run the finite element analysis/plasticity/transient-dynamic impact/ and displacement runs on the computer for both vessel and casque, and they all check out just dandy. (err, umm, so says the USGS/DOE/DOT/Bechtel)

And you’ve already got the money lined up by bake sale/injun casino for all the new overpasses, trunk lines, spurs, maintenance yards, security tunnels and 10,000 year monitoring program needed for the largest transportation mega-engineering plan in the history of western civilization.

btw, Nv and the other western states already have a nuke dump. So it ain’t my skin. When the train derails or is blown up in Nye, co. there aint nobody to care.

Anybody you know live on any of these routes (45million of your closest friends do)

Eight weeks ago the DOE/Bechtel dog and pony tour spoke in caliente. You know what their security plan was? One rider security car per train. (She’ll say this in public, but they haven’t released anything in writing.) Think they’re gonna stop this from happening as the train rolls at maximum speed of 59mph through Houston, or Vegas, or KC, or Nashville…

oops, looks like DOE forgot to include that one in their fact sheet/environmental impact statement.

c’mon; you’re a smart reader. How about coming up with another reason why it’s a great idea…

p.s The national academy of science report which was declassified two hours ago recommends storing waste at those 5000 sites in the dry casques shown in the video above. I look forward to their explanation of the explosions.

(oh gee, they won’t actually release their data; only willing to sell it. Guess they learned a trick or two from the 911 commission)’

of course, an empty tank explosion occurring between the UEL/LEL is not a BLEVE, but you knew that. Also, gasoline does not BLEVE, but you (I truly hope) also knew that. BLEVES typically occur from catastrophic impact to containers with carbon chains much shorter than gasoline (where the carbon chain exists as a gas in the natural state and the gas is kept in liquid state under pressure). In general, BLEVES are rare, the last major fatality incident in the US was over 25 years ago…

Fortunately 10$ of dry ice prevents problems associated with transport of empty fuel containers that you describe, which is among the reasons why it is so incredibly rare. Especially on tanker trucks, which experience very frequent accidents on the highway. Fuel transport tanks are designed to burn, which is why the firefighters let ‘em burn.

Regardless of the technical flaws of your parry (may I suggest a couple training courses as a starting point), the supposition as a general mechanism serves as an unsupported contention not addressing any of the issues that I’ve raised in response to initial objections. Let me know of any $10 fixes for ceramic composite casque jackets you may run across...

The interesting take is that transport of fuel and many other hazmats occur on a daily basis that carry much higher risks than low level nuclear wastes. Thousands are killed on the roads every year; we have the data and we accept that risk while acting accordingly. Transport of nuclear waste via the existing highway network is very feasible both technically and from a risk management perspective, but DOE consistently points out that it is not a political sell.

Which brings it back to my original post: that the science isn’t used as support for the proposed solution (because it either does not support the contentions or is simply fabricated) and that the depository is simply a political solution.

Way back yonder gravity separation techniques were developed by mining and then applied to the infantile wastewater business. Then wastewater treatment developed many of the flotation separation techniques now used in modern cyanide leach mining.

Hey, it that a coagulant in your clarifier, or are you just pissin’ in the garnet-polished sand filter agin?

WTR and AWR look like buys right here. WTS (33.06)running to far away? Can't understand why PIK has curried recent f(l)avor. Looks like it is in a stagnating pool of water. Volume tricky on some of these. CDZI, nice people and interesting operation, but maybe not the place for baby's school money ...

although some of their directives are misguided (for example, why push for crematoria emission controls when the Hg credits will be tradable by next decade anyway) they have some decent chunks of info. New report released today…

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/states/california/northern_california/11307738.htm

However, a couple of these are looking overextended imo and I have lightened up. Something that has shaped my outlook is that here in the western US power production is only half the problem. Power transmission is the other half, thus energy services companies are worth considering. Something else to keep in mind is the large number of firms that now have an energy division. For example, NEM, ABX, and CAG (Conagra foods) all have power interests in nevada.

They took on a huge amount of debt when they swallowed ICF and their share price took a stutter. I bought in then b.c. I thought it was a good fit and liked the long term outlook for their model. Perhaps now , however, they’re fully valued.

ORA is an interesting one. I don't own it since the IPO just came out late last year. However, I have been following the company for a couple years now and am familiar with some of their property. I see them making some very shrewd decisions. Any time the Israelis start to aggressively build a market share in the state I get interested. ORA and CAG actually have experimental research plants next door to each other. Most ironic, many of the geothermal taps were actually developed in the 1970s when wildcats placed wells throughout the hinterlands looking for oil and gas and instead hit hot water.

http://www.kitcomm.com/comments/gold/2003q3/2003_08/1030829.012026.mercuryee.htm

Am rotating out of MON into CAG. Mon has done just fine by me, and am looking for a sector rotation to spice things up a bit.

Date: Tue Jun 25 2002 00:05
}Only stock I like now, is monsanto ( mon ) at 18.35. absolutely nobody else likes it here...

consider taking a look at Canadian energy holding trusts and interest pass-throughs. The Canadian government has within the last year rescinded some of the previous obstacles to foreigners from investing funds in these trusts and IPTs. For instance, the funds once required no more than 50% foreign capital -which mandated constant rebalancing and inefficiency. Things look much more orderly now for foreign investors.

(Fun with Canadian Resources law) Law http://www.kitcomm.com/comments/gold/2004q2/2004_06/1040601.204507.mercuryee.htm

Too bad chemtalle foote doesn’t trade. I am looking for a decent lithium play.

http://www.chemetalllithium.com/lithium/lithium.nsf/vwFiles/Homepage/$FILE/home.html

4.3.05 Q: Dugway, skull valley, Crescent Valley, Yucca, today's storm hitting the west coast: see any connection

why do you think they are modeling the hydrology of the entire basin, nuthin better to do?

Az state has one of the better hydrology programs in theUS. but it can't compensate for some seriously flawed water case law...

and is the highest DOD priority for remediation of 'unknown object's in the western US.

US Department of Defense to admit that it had conducted a series in several decades-long programs (112, SHAD etc.)

that designed and modeled the release of numerious biological and chemical agents over US population centers, DOD enlistees and civilians including the release of mustard, VX, sarin and on and on and on. These more innocuous agents are simply the ones that have been declassified to date.

Following developments in a 1981 court case the DOD acknowledged spray tests off of crescent city and the Hawaiin islands and considered, but though better of, releasing results of chemical and biological spraying programs in san francisco bay.

gee, you dont think this has anything to do with keeping the pressure off Dugway proving grounds, do you?

4.3.05 Nevada Department of Environmental Protection rules on Crescent Valley groundwater

The muckers may get by on shear coaxial strength, but the engineers need some shoolin' ant there aint enough students or schools to go around.

they hold -quite- an intersting findings report they haven't released yet on the former asbestos mines and disposal practices in the foothills. one of the biggest housing booms of all time happening up there. all the senior brass was at the initial public meeting last week rolling out the party line. could get interesting...

Since they used it as a weight in drilling mud.
Then they pulled out the price supports in 1946 and the mines collapsed from another type of weight pressure altogether.

And the energy and water required to go about our daily business becomes prohibitive in both cost and supply

err - so far, in the first couple weeks anyway. No sense getting too far ahead of the curve…

the major factor affecting au stox in the last year has been the management team.

Who they get in a kissing contest with, who they take to the mat when the prenuptials agreement didn’t quite present the shield they had hoped when the merger mania didn’t quite go as planned. And that other stuff…

Don't underestimate the resolve and political astuteness of the climbing community...

don’t be shy. Who get’s your vote? Barrick’s Bullfrog, New Sleeper Mine, other?

Reclamation costs on Department of Interior (BIA, BLM, BOR, NPS etc.) lands run roughly $2K-10K an acre.

This story is gaining traction. Previously the lands that have transferred to private ownership had been in the immediate Las Vegas area and often had an accompanying swap. Now, the focus is on northern Nevada lands. Something to keep in mind when you look at that junior explorer in N. Nv.

The Smoke Creek Desert is solitary beauty incarnate. I am the better for having shared her company.

http://rgj.com/news/stories/html/2005/03/18/94968.php?sps=rgj.com&sch=LocalNews&sp1=rgj&sp2=News&sp3=Local+News&sp5=RGJ.com&sp6=news&sp7=local_news

3.19.05 Someone asked "I have 4,000 to invest in paper assets, what should I do?"

Most people learn by doing. So please allow me to suggest a little exercise:

1. Scan the financial forums on the web. Look through each relevant topic thread of interest:

2. Write down 25 of the Finance/Business authors and 25 Books mentioned in one of the “recommended reading material’ threads.

3. Write down your goals and objective for paper assets.

4. After you’ve done that it will be much easier to match further reading material to your goals.

For instance, ff 4,000 is your total take for the year, please consider NOT putting all of it in one place. You might develop three different plans, one for security, one for comfort and one for wealth. Each plan requires support, hence the 4,000 should support all three and not go in once place. That said, the Roth IRA should be a part of one plan, you must decide which one.

Moreover, not all 4,000 should be saved. Some should be spent, some invested, some saved, and some given away. The larger natural laws of money suggest this strategy.

As is, your question is quite open ended and therefore has not generated much specific advise. The exercise above will fill in many of the asset classes that are currently missing from your list. Once you have filled out the asset list, you can then begin to research each asset class individually. At that point, you will begin to see the risk/reward factors that determine return on investment. Only after you fully understand the various asset classes would it be worth the time to determine the best way to purchase.

5. And most importantly, have fun.

Why do you ask?

Are you the market maker routing through the Cincinnati desk?

The majority of my buy logic presented regards the fundamentals, with just a smidgen of technicals and psychology thrown in. Having spoken nothing to allocation or positioning or timing - not to mention placement strategy and routing - why would you pose your question to anything other than fundamentals?

Made some money on another sell; some proceeds always go partially toward more speculative ventures.

Most everything else I have posted here has been incredible staid and conservative.

Their recently stated financials were terrible, but I venture rather temporary as the bad news is out (CEO out in January, cessation of hardrock operations at Florida Canyon, restatement of earnings per Sarbanes-Oxley Section 404, etc.). Many of the juniors may likely face similar challenges regarding re-statement per the section 404 reporting and my sense is that AGT, though materially affected, will fare better than many others in retrospect.

Their average price per ounce production only rose 5% since last period reported, less than many other miners over the same period.

Their proven and probable reserves look good and the cost model looks extremely conservative.

I visited their Florida Canyon mine the last week of December and -mostly- liked what I saw; betting that the switchback pit highwall can be engineered and production will resume.

Like the fact that the Standard mine can be operated using currently existing infrastructure. Really like how the strip ratio will plummet between the switch from Florida Canyon to Standard Mine operation, especially given the cost model.

Exploration at the Black Fox property appears to be progressing rather well; I like the fact that new reserves of base metals were added - especially those with rising value (like most all commodities as of late - look at performance of the CRB).

Buying shares in any company that is losing money and trades well below the 200MA, especially after a 20% drop in a week is a highly speculative venture. However, the shares outstanding compare very well to other sector companies that were at a similar point in the growth curve. Management has decided to ride out on thin cash reserves rather than dilute shareholder position - definitely bucking the trend and gaining esteem in my vision. Either they run out of cash reserves before the Standard Mine is economically producing (or getting Florida Canyon back) or they tender a shelf offering. Basically, AGT right now looks very similar to other issues that I speculated in (BGO, GSS, DROOY, IVN, CDE etc.) in 2000 and 2003 and did very well in. All of those issues had serious cash flow problems and looked like bankruptcy was imminent, they all quintupled after the darkest hour. Perhaps I am simply trying to catch a falling knife and will lose a finger. Then again, a 14% sell off based on a press release noting difficulty with the phone connection is par for the course with junior gold issues, and could be a gift - hopefully not of the Trojan variety. My pain quotient is quite high for this sector and I can allow much looser stops than many would be able to stomach - mostly because I understand the sector and the risk vs. reward inherent to this particular type of beast.

So I finally got me a little stash this marn’ after staring at her afar for a few years now…

Just a couple of the buzzards profiting from what they couldn't make a meal out of on their own. Have you ever tallied how many corporations/agencies are keeping dossiers on your individual self?

1) make sure enough of us have our identity/credit hacked or otherwise compromised to the point we beg our kind legislators to pass the “Identity Theft Protection Act of 2007” which promises to guarantee ‘people who are they say they are’ via mandating biometric information in the national ID card.

2.28.05 Someone suggested they could earn 8% in an investment without increasing their risk.

I do not dispute that one can earn equivalent yield over 8%. There are certainly many out there. However, when looking at your bond fund, compared to the 10 and 30 year yields shown here:

http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?t=1y&s=%5ETNX&l=on&z=m&q=l&c=%5ETYX
(if problem loading, compare charts of ^TYX and ^TNX)

…by definition that fund is taking more risk than the underlying asset.

Also, you original example was:
“Jean invests the $160,000 in bonds and earns 10% per year.”

However, even the example of the bond fund you provide FAILS that target in 80% of the performance runs. (11.40%, 9.81%, 9.58%, N/A, 7.65%)

Here, plainly, your own metric fails upon examination by burden (and for that matter, the return only beat your performance criteria in the last year – not exactly the yardstick of bond performance).

Disagree that bonds are the safest thing out there, I remember Milken, S&L failures, Orange county etc. Junk corporate and muni bonds are nothing new.

I just acknowledge the alpha and beta where you refuse to.

Hey, why not push a Collateralized Mortgage Obligation (CMO) with yield of 14% as a supporting example of the argument?

Safe right? Underlying asset guaranteed by Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac right?

If there is no increased risk, than why wouldn’t everyone dump their Ginnie Maes at 5% for the CMO?

That is, my counterpoint is that your argument is weak via error of omission. My other (still unaddressed) example - not mentioning repeal of Glass-Steagall - is another support of the same counterpoint argument.

Hence, your contention that fund X guarantees a (very) short term return independent of risk variable Y does not support your opening gambit since you failed to provide an supporting example for your own originally contention (10% bond yield), much less counter my parry on risk acknowledgment.

2.22.05
The Bank of South Korea announces it will begin to divest itself from the US Dollar. The USD and US equity markets tank while commodities (metals, grains, and oils rise).

Have you taken the time and effort to diversify the unit of denomination underlying your basket of asset goodies?

Is the lack of buying new US Treasury issues the same as turning the money already in Treasuries (bills, notes and bonds) back in to the treasury?

What if Korea isn’t the only nation that begins to divest itself of dollars?
What if other countries already have, but you haven’t been privy to the news release yet?
What if individuals other than Soros, Buffet and Gates begin to publicly announce their strategy to foist the greenbuck on somebody else?

What if ‘What ifs’ are just place-marks along a timeline?

Thoughts?

Last night leaving a restaurant a man approaches me and says "Excuse me, do I know you?". How in the hell would I know what he knows? I might have an idea what he has never learned, but no way could I grasp the full comprehension of his years on earth. He then proceeds to immediately tell me his hard luck story and how he and his wife were homeless. So, I immediately offered him the doggy bag - the majority of a fine meal. At that point he asks what it is, and after informing him it was Chicken Fiorina and Alfredo, he declined the offer and said: "No thanks, my wife and I are vegetarians".

At that point, rather than parry with the trite 'hey buddy, beggars can't be choosers' I instead smiled and wished him a pleasant evening.

I have heard of people allergic to all kinds of things: pollen, dust, mites, dirt, flowers, cats, dogs, work, peanuts, wheat, rice, chocolate, alcohol, beans and on and on.

Back in the 1930’s the burgeoning opposition to the petrochemical oligarchy found an open pulpit at Popular Mechanics.

2) Petrogarchy won and a slight change in the editorial staff at Pop. Mech. (and the Larger board of directors if u get my drift) occurred.

2.8.05 Fannie Mae hits 52 week low

The 30 year UST bond yield breaks the trendline into new 2-year lows.
Major Treasury auction of 5 and 10 year notes coming up later this week.
Coincidence?

http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?t=1y&s=%5ETNX&l=on&z=m&q=l&c=%5ETYX
(if problem loading, compare charts of ^TYX and ^TNX)

answer this riddle…
If the FED is raising rates, why are the yields falling?

Plenty of mining left in Mineral County. The Co. is desperate for more of a tax base. Too much reliance currently on the military depot. The transportation network is good and will grow. Maybe Gryphon and Aberdene will share notes…

http://www.kitcomm.com/comments/gold/2003q3/2003_07/1030710.010407.mercuryee.htm

http://finance.yahoo.com/q/ta?s=CSTR&t=2y&l=on&z=m&q=l&p=m50,e50&a=r14,m26-12-9&c=

4yrs later: breakdown from 5^th wave doubletop confirmed by inability to push through 50EMA resistance on retest?

not too happy about the story about their machines providing a short return on the spot survey…

Why would an investor submit shares during this extension period if they hadn’t previously?

Spoke to somebody today who was considering bankruptcy, and felt quite depressed.

Today is a new and fantastic beginning for you, it just hasn’t sunk in yet because right now you are not in the frame of mind to interpret current circumstances as a good thing, rather than a disaster. But, that perspective WILL change.

Right now might not be the best time to make big decisions.

So make small ones.

First things first.

Set some time aside each day for solace from the ones who care about you and for whom you care.
You will not get financially healthy without regaining spiritual and mental health that was affected by your job refusal and other disappointments in your life.; that will take time. Realize that for MOST of your issues, time IS on your side.

Triage.

Please allow me to point out two items from your message:

“This weekend I bought a real estate investing book…”
“We have tons of credit care debt…”

These two situations are not compatible. You cannot get out of debt by spending. It’s akin to doubling down on a losing hand.

Instead, you could borrow a book, or go to the library, or get your financial education on the internet, or……many other things other than taking money out of your wallet.

Yeah, you already know that, so why not DO that? Positive behavior breeds positive outlook.

Think about today, not tomorrow or next week or next year. Those dates in the future are full of the misery you see coming. Instead, focus on today and today only. Think small and act small but act OFTEN. Lots of little good things add up to one big thing.

Make a to-do list for tomorrow:
1. Hug your family and make a plan to seek spiritual or mental counseling.
2. Make a budget for the rest of the month; or take a hard look at your existing budget.

A. Figure out EXACTLY how much you are spending every month
B. Figure out EXACTLY how much you are making every month.

What is the difference? If negative, you must turn that around immediately before building a business IMO. You always want to build on a solid footing, right?

Think of it this way, if you have credit card with a balance of $1,000 and an interest rate of 13%, paying that balance off is the same thing (better actually) than having a $1,000 face bond paying 13%. Right now, you would be extremely hard pressed to find a bond, or practically any other investment paying 13%. PLENTY of companies would love a 13% cash on cash return. The credit card companies are doing ok, right? Of course, you already KNOW that, but that MBA is getting in the way and you are swinging for the fences of tomorrow (buying the REI book) instead of bunting for first base today (redirecting that dollar toward working for you instead of against you). Work on TODAY'S cashflow, not tomorrows.

So use the MBA today: Plot your expenditures vs income. When those two lines reverse, and you are making more than spending, you have just changed your life. It is then just a function of time before the rising chart representing your assets intersects the declining. Now the end goal is only a matter of the event horizon.

You can start spending less than you make. Go to fatwallet dot com. Search the threads and links for debt reduction. Or, if you got religion, go to Dave Ramsey dot.com (just don't buy the mutual fund bs). There are thousands of people serving an example as testimony to the fact that decreasing your expenditures can be done more easily and quicker than increasing your income at the start. Yet, the net difference is the same at the beginning of the curve. Fact is, gutting your household expenses by 10%, -30% is quite doable, even if (no, especially if) you think you’re already cutting into bone.

Get in the habit of having a lot of little wins. The size of the wins will only grow.

Now go back to that to-do list. Repeat steps one and two. (Of course on the family/spiritual side you will be working the plan, not making it and on the budget side you will be working on making the budget more favorable instead of recreating it). Every day you’ll chalk up a win in both those columns, by just doing two things a day. Some days when you’re feeling a little better, more will get accomplished.

Here is how you changed your life today: You realized that you will be leaving the company you’re with. The only uncertainty is when. So, make the best of it while it lasts, because it is only temporary. It is only just a matter of time before the debt is gone, and then so are you...

The above worked for me (pretty well, actually). Can’t see why it wouldn’t work for everybody else…

You have two self-mandates: 1) make the expenses go down and 2) make the income go up

1. Make Expenses go Down
Concentrate on reducing expenses first b.c. it is easier, quicker results, shows immediate results and therefore provides the payback and positive re-enforcement necessary to keep on track
- Make a list of your life’s priorities and goals. Include your wife and family.
- Make a budget and stick to it. Do not spend more than your budget. A purpose for every penny. Track every penny. Eventually you will be rounding off at the dollar, than the tens place, then the hundreds… but start with the penny. Amazing what attention to detail can do for the bottom line and the opening of doors and windows that heretofore appeared as thick brick walls upon which you had beaten your head. A penny saved is between 1.3 and 3.8 earned (or more).
- Show us your budget. Break out the debt service from the living expenses.
- Your budget has two major classes: what you must do to survive (food power shelter transportation to job) and what you must do to get ahead and thrive (pay off bad debt, build saving and business, charity). Fund the first class first, than the second. You have income enough to fully obligate the first class and meet the very minimum on the second class (until your debt ration goes down and/or your income goes up).
- Cutting down on daily living expenses is something you can do TODAY. By knocking out 10% of the fat you should be able to only spend $1,530 next month, allowing the extra money to go toward debt payment/building assets. There IS fat there, just requires some choices. Some might say hard choices, but if you really have made the list of your life’s priorities than by extension you already made the choice. Now it is simply a matter of execution, diligence, tracking, follow-up and continual improvement.
- There are thousands of web pages, and books, really a whole cottage industry on how to reduce expenses. Search ‘frugality’; surf fatwallet; learn the concepts of first fruits and gleaning. Pay yourself first, than your creditors, than your charities. All three are critical.

DO NOT consolidate your loans for the moment. Do not enter into ANY contracts until you fully understand all provisions and both short and long term provisions of the contract. You can not get out of debt by going into debt.

Do not declare bankruptcy. Your income debt ratio as described does not warrant. Your debts look very serviceable.
First: get current with each debt by making the minimum payment.
Second: concentrate on eliminating the worse debt. You already have money to direct toward the debt. Break down the types of debt, holders of debt, current account status, balance, terms etc.
Third: Than rank those according to who you will pay first. Until you understand which one to pay first based upon the order you determine which in turn is based upon the criteria above, continue making minimum payment.
Fourth: Once you fully understand the particulars of each debt class, only then will you be able to make an informed decision regarding consolidation. Some realize that by getting their financial affairs in order, the need to consolidate is replaced by better options, such as segregated and dedicated debt reduction plan. For instance, by cutting expenses and putting the extra income into the debt you may realize it is not worth it to re-schedule the debt load. You might be better off ‘surfing’ credit card balances from one bank to another with increasingly favorable rates. Be very deliberate during this process; debt consolidation –whether through agencies, non-profits, or credit cards, are fraught with peril. You might decide to pay off the smallest debt, than focusing on the next. Or you might focus on paying off the highest percentage debt. Or maybe you want to pay off the most annoying creditor, or that debt that is causing the greatest shame or guilt. Get past the guilt. There is only today; today and eighty-nine-hundred thousands of books and web pages of information out there on how to do this right. Don’t follow any advice until you A) Fully understand it and B) It resonates as the right move. Intuition must match education for fruition to flower.
Fifth: With all that credit card debt, you probably have many gizmos and junk that you do not need, that can be sold to help meet your goals. Learn the benefits of garage sales, ebay, craigs list, swaps etc. De clutter your mine and closet simultaneously. The quick and small have advantages over the large and cumbersome.
Sixth: Find a credit union. You need a better source of credit until you build up your reserves.
Seventh: learn something new and meet somebody new everyday. Good things will happen.

2. Make Income go Up

A) 10K seed money

DO NOT do anything with the 10K for the moment. That is your current safety net/emergency fund source. It provides a very real tangible emergency source AND psychological back stop for the present.

You should only use your capital to start a business when you have WRITTEN a clear business plan with sections on topics such as: goals, objective, financing, markets, advertising, branding, inventories, accts. Payable and receivable, incorporating strategies, tax plans etc. Unless you know what business you want to do right now, and can develop these topics to some degree, you are probably not ready to open your own business just yet; or at least using your only seed capital to do so.

If you are not certain what business you want to do right now, then you need to answer that question. This is a process, amongst other exercises, in gaining financial literacy. What you learn will simultaneously help your immediate situation as well as provide long term guidance and parameters for your personal and business development.

Short and medium term, figure out the best ways to maximize return on that seed capital while decreasing risk. Right now it might be sitting in your checking account. If so, move it to the savings account to gain some interest. Next phases: move from savings to money market; than money market to CDs; than CDs to simple and diversified no-load mutual funds; than; than from simple and diversified mutual funds to simple and diversified stocks/bonds; than from stocks bonds to other forms of paper assets (hundreds of classes); than from paper assets into more leveraged income streams (your business, seed capital for other business). The point in this exercise, which will take years, is that you must FULLY understand the pros/cons of each step in the investment phase. You must become fully literate at the step you are in before moving forward. You must understand the alphas and betas of each holding mechanism. If you do not, make the time to learn about the contents of one room before making the informed choice to moving into the next room, you risk being simultaneously kicked out of the room your are in and being locked out from the other rooms. This situation would result by both the sharks of the world forcing your move under duress and your own lack of knowledge and action plan preventing a move under your own force and motive.

b) Determine how you can make more money in your current line of work. Conversely, in the medium term, do you need to change lines of work.

c) develop the business in those hours you are not working for someone else. Eventually and gradually change the ratio of hours working for someone else/hours working for self. Consider volunteering to get experience and foot in the door; swap expertise/labor; look into labor bartering systems and co-ops; expand your network and join up with other circles.

Bottom verse:
Do not let anybody else determine your personal affairs: You MUST become the captain of your own ship and plot your own course. Otherwise you will remain at mercy of the waves and the seas; we all know the depth and danger of the SEA of the Financial Unknown and The Tide of Sturm and Drang and Restlessness grow more powerful and dreadful with each passing month. Only by taking full command of the helm of your ship, through sheer determination work and education, will you be able to steer yourself out of the storm. If someone else does it for you, you learn and earn nothing. Others can help, but only AFTER your offer and only WITHIN you bounds of understanding.

All above IHMO. Do your own due diligence. You may find there are more important things than money; but few more precious than the examined and directed life. What I outlined above in most cursory fashion has helped me and countless others, but you might find a better path. If so, do tell.

Unfortunately, because the line was so long, I have no shiny CA state quarters today.

· The line was long because governor Arnie was handing out coins to the kids and the USMint director was signing the rolls.

· The schoolchildren got in early because Arnie threw a party and invited them in before the open house.

The re-introduction program has actually gone better than a number of avian biologists had expected. The release site nearest to Yosemite Valley is actually across the Central Valley at Pinnacles National Monument.

Although the Condor once flew over Half Dome, and the rest of the continent, the likelihood of re-introduction today is not quite as favorable. Reintroduction programs require the best CURRNET habitat, not the best historic one. For example, one other species no longer in CA native habitat ranges, the Grizzly Bear, could be re-established , However, the likely re-establishment would be within the Sierra Nevada, not the original habitat of the Great Central Valley. Another example is the reintroduction of the Bighorn sheep in the eastern Sierra, which is going very poorly.

For more than you ever wanted to know about the Ca quarter design issue (and some interesting funnies) start here:

The state quarter design has deep yet subtle environmental politics running throughout, likely lost on most users of pocket change. The condor wasn’t picked for its great beauty.

My better half went down to the California State Historical Museum/Archives today around lunch time. The Museum was selling the 'first day of issue' packaging and availing uncirculated rolls of quarters; they won't be in circulation for a few weeks yet. Many others had the same purpose, as the line just to get in the building was two and a half blocks long and took well over an hour. Not sure how long the line was once in the Museum. Apparently the school children had first dibs and were let in early. Some could be heard leaving with their quarry and pronouncing "glad I don't have to wait in that line" (little brats).

Personally, I laugh to myself whenever I see the quarter design. The California Condor flying over Half Dome is a vision only the politicians could love - Yosemite Valley is not habitat for the Condor (though it was habitat for John Muir. If you know where to look you might see traces of the sawmill he established there).

When I first heard about the state quarters program, in early 1999, I thought what a boon it would prove to what appeared a moribund market at the time, and I began buying coins. Sure enough, millions of new collectors - both new and young - have joined the hobby and coin collecting has only increased my innate interest in metals.

But today, I started to think of selling (that portion that should be sold and keeping that portion that should be kept).

Generally they are pushing debt and leverage as means to an early abundance. The argument is essentially: borrow money at 5% and earn 8% or more in return. Typically, however they forget to note some of the possible setbacks inherent to that particular path.

For instance, the Glass-Steagall was passed in 1933, but most neglect to mention that it was repealed (quite coincidentally) just before this recent housing mania.

Anybody receiving 8% after taxes in the current market climate is either taking significant risk or has undefined labor capital involved. (also, tax hit is provided but not fiat depreciation).

I have heard many stories of people who saved their way to wealth and then died only to leave a significant bequeath to some charity.

Now I do not dispute that one can earn equivalent yield over 8%. There are certainly many vehicles out there that can supply that type of performance. Here are two of mine previously posted:

However, when looking at performance, they should all be plotted against the cost of borrowing money and the return on lending out that money. That is, the underlying asset yield presented by the 10 and 30 year yields shown here:

http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?t=1y&s=%5ETNX&l=on&z=m&q=l&c=%5ETYX
(if problem loading, compare charts of ^TYX and ^TNX)

…by definition, any bond fund returning more than the 10year note is taking more risk than the underlying asset.

Much of the time the solution for gaining 8% real return cash-on-cash fails upon a hard examination.

I just acknowledge the alpha and beta where others refuse to.

Hey, why not push a Collaterlized Mortgage Obligation (CMO) with yield of 14% as a supporting example of the argument?

Safe right? Underlying asset guaranteed by Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac right?

If there is no increased risk, than why wouldn’t everyone dump their Ginnie Maes at 5% for the CMO?

Chart don’t look so hot, but at $2.80 a share doing better than quite a number of other wanna be goldies out there…

Stock looks nice: “The stock has a wonderful vignette of an eagle with smaller vignettes and steamships and railroads. The stock is in crisp excellent condition with only faint folds and a few cancellation holes.”

Mercury sayeth: "Buyeth the pretty little paper of the three-score-year-gone bankrupt memory of a company now while the share price is appreciating."

Height of the just say no campaign - establishing the framework for private property confiscation and sale through auction. Course, nobody said nothing at the time cuz just the druggies were losing their cars, homes, and lives.

At the time, just POSSESION of any measurable amount of THC was a felony. Mayor of a local city served as one of the spokes for Peruvian flake traffic; the federales were bustin up decades old marijuana rings to establish their own people to foment the more lucrative and destructive powder business; big time narcotraffic from e. mexico piped through NV. just as the state serves as a major transportation hub now.

Just laying the groundwork, establishing protocol, setting case law for private property confiscation formulae under patriot I, II, googlaplex

I made my stand during that campaign against the man and his ideas. Maybe a little ahead of the curve and hence a solitary point along that curve (and the pitiful force of a few likeminds that served as resistance at the time).

Yet, the cult of personality runs amok, but those few of us in the pitiful resistance force have put some decent props out there. NV held vote on Silver as legal tender two years ago. Up to 40% of the state now voting for cannabis decriminalization. (the curse of meth addiction and chicom/meximafia narcotraffic that many states across the union are just now experiencing had been beta tuned and tested in the 24-hour NV playground in the early/mid 80s)

scores of 1/64th trills staccatissimo under compression are not as effective a love song as Dsus, G7th, Cmaj slow and sustained, with rests – plenty of time for noodling, dolce doodling and accentuated articulation.

Anybody ever tally how many corporations/agencies are keeping dossiers on your individual self?

Setting up for the big fight. Round one started in 1898 when vonZephyr put an earthen damn on the Truckee River spillway from Lake Tahoe. Guns started blazing, killing mostly Paiute when the next damn on the Truckee – Derby – was built. By 1902, water issues in N. Nevada caused formation of the Bureau of Reclamation, operator of many of the largest dams in the world.

Common hucksterism dictates conducting water survey used for appropriate rights adjudication during the wet years, of which this is one.

They will dewater the entire northern province; moreso than what has already been done to date.

Hiring a lawyer to protect your gold is about as effective as hiring one to protect your water.

Maybe that lil’ commissioner from White Pine County population 3,000 and any twenty of those fine layers you see on the peoples court got a fine chance fighting the insatiable demand of the las vegas strip and THEIR money and power?

Stopping the gaming and construction industry in vegas will not flow from the right of White Pine people to their creek.

(the last and most recent and most western branch of the Anasazi indians – the Fremont – irrigated the snake valley near Baker Nv roughly 6,000 years ago. The most western irrigation lands of the indigenous cultures.

How to Read A Financial Report, by John A Tracy (3 bux at a used bookstore, for the board of trustees I’m on)

Waiting for the rapture so I’ll finally get some peace and quiet to catch up on the reading list.

For example, before that I didn’t realize where people bought their crack pipes.

Of course, these five major food groups don’t come cheap anymore (not if you follow the VICEX).

I asked my friend a couple years back if he got anything interesting in change. (I ask this of clerks whenever I remember to do so)

He had a couple items to show, but was completely stumped upon their value or origin.

That is when I took the time to explain the wikiwide world of numismatics, to the degree her would experience it.

When the peeps get the Jones for one of the five major food groups listed above, they aren’t above cashing in their, or the stolen/borrowed, silver collection.

He just recently had a n 1885 Carson City silver Dollar come over the counter - for a dollar.

From wall street to main street (at 3 am). Only difference is the size of the scam…

Remember, whatever it takes, keep the people off their public lands. Much easier to manage the herds corralled in the cities under the watchful eyes of the surveillance network. Another –temporary- fee becoming inalienable for all generations, how shocking. My favorite is the part about how institutionalizing the penalty will ensure the public has a say in how the land is managed. If you have to continually pay for it – it ain’t yours.

http://www.rgj.com/news/stories/html/2005/01/22/90426.php?sps=rgj.com&sch=Umbrella&sp1=rgj&sp2=umbrella&sp3=umbrella&sp5=RGJ.com&sp6=news&sp7=umbrella&jsmultitag=umbrella.rgj.com

In 1973 the United States Postal Service began converting its fleet of service vehicles (at the time, the largest non-military fleet in the world) to compressed natural gas. However, neither Ford nor its vendors nor any other group could develop a suitable converter package with suitable maintenance and operation requirements. The Postal service completely abandoned CNG technology for the entire fleet by the end of the millennium. Currently, the entire fleet runs on standard fuels; the focus fro the future lies on two technologies: biodiesel and electric (hybrid) vehicles.

If I were to host a discussion forum, eventually it would face problems similar to all other like minded pursuits. Flame wars, ego trips, saboteurs, sycophants, spammers, phishers, and subsequent requests to the mod on high would ensu. These requests might included entreaties to add filters, blockers, and removal of certain posters.

How about EVERYBODY has everyone else’s login and password. That is there are none because everybody can change the text at will.

Read the below primer if you have not heard of the concept before.
Why wouldn’t this option work for this forum?

Thoughts?
( try it yourself )
http://moinmoin.wikiwikiweb.de/WhyWikiWorks#preview

I mentioned a few months ago that the Rich Dad forums, populated by the followers of mass-pop financial author Robert Kiyosaki of the Rich Dad series were all aflutter about gold. Essentially, the Rich Dad series pushes the concepts of buying assets, not debts. At the time of publishing a few years ago, much of the focus was on how one could use leverage to purchase rental properties and consider the cashflow an asset. However, in the recent 12-18 months or so Mr. Kiyosaki had published his Armageddon piece de resistance about the coming financial equities collapse, mainly resulting from demographic drivers. He had recently been talking about the wonders of gold. His followers have picked up on the sentiments and are basically wondering how, exactly, does one purchase gold and what does gold do for them. (Too, they seem confused as a group since the original series of books did not cover precious metals to any degree at all).

I find it most interesting that Mr. Kiyosaki had changed his messaging strategy from using leverage to produce asset wealth to using gold to conserve wealth. Without a doubt, a considerable portion of his readership are still coming to terms with basic economic considerations and their own meager understanding of the global financial milieu and demonstrate puzzlement that the take home message is now tailored to that slim minority with the problem of wealth preservation, not the daily struggle to acquire it.

Especially delightful is the comparison of another financial guru gaining considerable following in the US – Dave Ramsey. He has been preaching feverishly that the path to financial stability is to swear off debt completely; to the point where use of a credit card is absolutely verboten. The kicker here, this gentleman is an absolute gold hater and rails against the evils of precious metals in a portfolio every time a listener brings up the subject.

Personally, I find the words of each author rather pedantic. Yet I find the trials, tribulations, and search for knowledge within the maze called the struggle for the legal tender of their readership– as compared to my own - absolutely fascinating. Without a doubt, their (reader/listenership) iterations and declarations on a daily basis are the most accurate glimpse one can view into the true current pictures of the work economy. I find the financial gurus more and more taken aback and, or simply over emoting aghast and surprised, with the desperation and barely simmering contempt for the official party line, that callers and listeners as citizens on the street proffer as their vision each and every day on the afternoon drive.

As you know, more so than anyone by virtue of hosting your own quality gold forum, the places dedicated to such verbal fare on the precious metals topics are numbered as the digits on one’s hands.

Would be interesting to see the individual forum hit numbers plotted on a curve for each forum over the last five years.

Instead of the mindset you are two weeks until being homeless, how about pondering on the fact you are two weeks away from ending the most serious negative cashflow factor in your life: rent. Admittedly, I never enjoyed any of the times I had to stay in my car, thankfully those times were brief. What I do see in my area is a number of people living in vans parked around the neighborhood. If you realize that you may be headed toward living in your vehicle for a short time, you will not be devastated when the time comes; instead you will be prepared.

Are you getting your deposit/security check back from the place you're are currently renting from?
I never had to sleep with tools of the trade before, but would imagine that you need to keep a very close eye on them so the shelters are not an option. A solid used Ford Econoline van is cheap and dependable and might fit the bill as a place you could both live and work out of for a short term. That is what the working poor in my neighborhood live in. Just think of the hundreds of dollars you will build up by not paying just two months rent.

The things you have going for you: ability to work, friends, and clients are a very good network. Instead of staying on a friends couch, and stressing the relationship, you might consider only staying with them those nights when you really need a warm rest. The absolute worst stories that have been told to me included the burning of the support network. Keeping the support network is invaluable and not replaceable for many months. Yet, protect your health and use that warm bed when you really have to. You health allows you the only income you currently have and must be salvaged at all costs.

Think small ball: short term health; short term pain in the van at night over just a few months will set you in position for a decent work truck and first/lst/security deposit down the road.

Lots of people have to stay out of doors for a while, and I guess you might have had to do the same previously. The think that jumped out to me was that your post title - almost homeless - seems about the end of the month bearing down on you as judgment day. Small ball is looking to get that hit, and the bunt, and the steal which you can string together for a single score. Concentrate on getting the score, not the strikeout. Each swing and miss only brings you closer to the line drive.

Had subscription to the latter from the following publishers: cde, wht, gss, gg, iag, hmy gfi

http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?t=1y&s=HMY&l=on&z=m&q=l&c=gfi%2Bcde%2Bgss%2Bwht%2Bgg%2Bwht

1.16.05 Tis the season: IRS reporting, College Loan applications, and Social Security Statements

The US tax revenue agent sends a statement showing how much one will receive via this exquisite DRIP plan at various ages. IN the early daze, the age projections were 55-62. Now they are 62-70. I read this as 72-80 AFTER the MEANS TEST.

Thos who are now developing their children’s financial aid requests for college funding know what I mean. Perhaps we should all become biblically familiar with this process. The day is soon when we will have the means test for social security.

By the way, on which line of the student aid financial means test, parent holdings section, do you report your physical gold holdings?

1.16.05 Us equity market 05 performance and historical trends: pro and con

Pro: every year ending in the digit 5 has seen positive performance since the Garfield administration

Con: 05 performance of first hour, day and week of trading (month remains open, though halfway over)

“The combined company would enable Goldcorp to meet its goal of becoming a one million ounce producer of gold, with low cash costs (less than $100 per ounce of gold), with no debt, and no hedging by the year 2005.”

2. Offer tender at price level where the expected acceptance of shareholders will net between 50 and 66.6% of outstanding common shares.

3. Agree to purchase non-tendered shares during a second offering – known as subsequent acquisition transaction, subject to various clauses.

5. Not offer subsequent acquisition transaction, due to clause regarding potential exercising of warrants as percentage of float as a ration to common shares tendered during the initial purchase.

From: December 29, 2004 Directors Circular recommending acceptance of the offer by Goldcorp Inc. …to Acquire All Outstanding Common Shares o Wheaton River Minerals LTD:

Page 23: “The Special Committee considered this possibility, but concluded that there is a minima rush of a Subsequent Acquisition Transaction not being completed if the Minimum Tender Condition is satisfied.”

And, in the Goldcorp Offer to Purchase Wheaton River Mineral LTD dated 12/29/04 on

Page 4: “If for some reason no second-step transaction takes lace, the number of Wheaton’s shareholder and of Common Share that are still in the hands of the public may be so small that there will no lonnger be an active public trading market for the common shares. Also, as described above, Wheaton may cease being required to comply with Canadian and SEC rules relating to publicly held companies.”

Re: Gold
In 2004 Bullion went up 5.6% in US Dollars. It went up less or even declined in other currencies.
In 2004 gold mining shares declined an average of 9%.
In 2004 Coins appreciated greatly. Though extremely difficult to determine an average, many saw appreciation of 20-70%.

All three classes saw great gains between 1999 and 2004, and also saw large losses between 1996-1999 (generally).

Bullion - Any prudent financial advisor should show you how to purchase an approximate 3-6% of your net wealth in precious metals. Should be purchased with low risk/low velocity money.

Mining Shares - Only for the experienced. Should be purchased with high risk/high velocity money.

Coins - My favorite. Suggest DO NOT purchase coins before spending at least several months learning the market. Even then, suggest finding an advisor. Thought the rewards are great, the risk is high.

note the extreme generosity of the successful miners. cash gifts, not the donation in kind kind teetering on the edge of a matching grant to some social engineering program. Too bad they still are stuck in cash mode. Turn that $22M into donations of gold ingots at the food banks and reap the whirlind press profit.

http://images.businessweek.com/mz/04/48/philanthropy/0448philantropy12.htm?thisSpeed=12000

i like this guys analysis of biblical standards.
always enjoy coming across one based upon other great religiosophic reference works of mankind...

there have been some archaeological works broadly brushing the subject. what i've discerned is typically the weight of an early currency is rather proportional to the distance from the bourse. that is, obsidian holds a high value for those without access, and carries a premium for the miles a trader had to haul the rock. seashells also had value to those without access, but were more readily transportable - hence a lower premium.

http://www.spiritrestoration.org/Church/Research%20History%20and%20Great%20Links/Biblical%20Weights%20Measure%20and%20Monetary%20System.htm#LINEAR%20MEASURES

Was simply organized and packaged for one destination: failure to gain any traction whatsoever.

Of course, the real issue that should be on the table is the real and imminent deficit of Medicare ( a much larger problem) and the obscene medicine hand away passed last year. Naturally, these problems are so large nobody provides any ink for discourse; allowing the red herring social security issue front run the distraction. When it goes nowhere, the naysayer can say 'i told you so' and the ostensible backers can say 'oh, but we tried our hardest'.

obviously i am calculating my bets on the expectation ( yes, literally - as in payoff table ) that the, ahem, privatization does occur.

just a matter of stripes...

12.20.04 Finance Talk Shows: Investtalk and social security reform smoke screen

These guys are on now in my area. I like 'em. Jerry Klein knows what he's talking about; old CBOT commodity hand.
Been talking short term POO 35-40 and his timing has been right on.
I called the show last week and asked the following question:

If you guys were at the economic summit in Wash. DC last week as members of congress, and were discussing the privatization of social security to allow ? at least in part- private investing, what parameters, restrictions and sideboards would you require. i.e. would I be able to trade on margin, buy penny stocks, etc.

I asked the question b.c. I sense that their answers will broadly reflect the type of sentiment currently being whispered into the ears of our congressmen regarding the issue.

They got fired up on the question and started arguing with each other, which I enjoy ( and why I call in ) .

The answered, generally, that they would require only investment in mutual funds because otherwise Johnny Q Public would put his money in Google with a current market cap valuation at twice of General Motors.

Ok, I expected that; and fully see the financial services firms to be the prime beneficiaries of the privatization movement ( and at least to some degree the movement in expectation behind repeal of the Glass Steagal act ) .

The other main part of the answer, which I did see coming, was this:
They would not handle the average Private Investment Account ( for lack of a better name at the moment ) . At my supposition, that is because the average account will not meet their minimum requirements of $250k.

So, WHO will be the prime offeror of investment services advice to the general public holding perhaps 25-200k in their accounts? I know our broker also only wants to deal w/ accts. Over $250 K.

My thoughts on the matter, is that this privatization effort will create a niche for those financial advisors who can pull together a series of smaller investor nest eggs into a pool for investment. Again, the major financial services houses will be the beneficiaries, seating these advisors at junior grades and taking a cut off the top of each pooled fund. I simply see no avenue for any of this money flowing into physical gold, or any miners not listed in the XAU/HUI.

Thoughts?

they don't fit in the salvation army bucket slot

though, funny enough, that infernal bell WILL fit if you jump up and down and stomp on it enough to break it down into 20 or 25 pieces...

Should SS privatization occur, the common wisdom is that this will drive the DOW/S&P etc. up
This would only be the case should the dollar stabilize.

Look at the top performing mutual funds for the week according to the shills at Forbes.

Here's one:

almost %75 in cash, trading the FOREX no doubt.
What incentive do they have to put into equities, much less S&P based...

these guys are on now. I like ‘em. Jerry Klein knows what he’s talking about; old CBOT commodity hand.

If you guys were at the economic summit in Wash. DC last week as members of congress, and were discussing the privatization of social security to allow – at least in part- private investing, what parameters, restrictions and sideboards would you require. I.E would I be able to trade on margin, buy penny stocks, etc.

I ask the question b.c. I sense that their answers will broadly reflect the type of sentiment currently being whispered into the ears of our congressmen regarding the issue.

They got fired up on the question and started arguing with each other, which I enjoy (and why I call in).

The answered, generally, that they would require only investment in mutual funds because otherwise Johnny Q Public would put his money in Google with a current market cap valuation at twice of General Motors.

Ok, I expected that; and fully see the financial services firms to be the prime beneficiaries of the privatization movement (and at least to some degree the movement in expectation behind repeal of the Glass Steagal act).

They would not handle the average Private Investment Account (for lack of a better name at the moment). At my supposition, that is because the average account will not meet their minimum requirements of $250k.

So, WHO will be the prime offeror of investment services advice to the general public holding perhaps 25-200k in their accounts? I know our broker also only wants to deal w/ accts. Over $250 K.

My thoughts on the matter, is that this privatization effort will create a niche for those financial advisors who can pull together a series of smaller investor nest eggs into a pool for investment. Again, the major financial services houses will be the beneficiaries, seating these advisors at junior grades and taking a cut off the top of each pooled fund.

Should SS privatization occur, the common wisdom is that this will drive the DOW/S&P etc. up

Psssstt, hey NV miners. Why not help me re-write the 1872 mining act? I promise, it will be GOLD for YOU. Shorten the paperwork and everything.

Today: The Heavy Foot lands in the Clay ( the news broke just a few hours ago 12.10.04 )

Reversal: State wants EPA to lead cleanup of polluted Nev. Mine'
(See 3.25.04 post for setup of the story)

http://www.rgj.com/news/stories/html/2004/12/08/87144.php?sps=rgj.com&sch=LocalNews&sp1=rgj&sp2=News&sp3=Local+News&sp5=RGJ.com&sp6=news&sp7=local_news

happened under cover fire of major National Public Radio ( rockefeller channel ) piece on falling dollar.

within pennies. might suggest legitimacy for their current count. no more no less.

]Anybody catch mary anne aden on moe ansari?s
] show Friday? Take up the offer for the free 12
] page newsletter? Offer anything besides au
]must hold 377? Maybe like the benefits for
]expats btw. Costa rica vs. panama?

I suspect the stop loss gap policy is as much to keep bodies over there as it is to keep bodies from lining up the street over here. Keep the job numbers up.

Suppose the veteran placement service people working overtime, helps productivity numbers…

First time position. Personally, I think it might prove a terrible buy at this location. But, the broker was quite excitable this morning over USD histrionics and convinced the SO. Besides, its just emergency cash. Given that the amount the USD has lost, may as well call it an emergency at some point, and suppose this point is as good as any…

starting to think 3.23 could be more visible in the rear view mirror than the windshield …

maybe they held off until sure that the intelligence czar legislation show was a go.

FIRST US INTERNMENT PHASE ? 1850-1902
There have been two major phases in this country, we are just now entering the third.

The first phase began out of combined xenophobic and protectionist roots. Basically, the western laborers were in a hard pinch because the labor boom associated with the gold rush was on the decline and there was a perception that the Chinese laborers were the beneficiary of this reduced labor prices; nay, they must have caused the labor priced deflations. One of the first legislative pieces supporting this dogma was the Miners' Tax License Law of 1850, supported by Californian and Washington state laws passed later.

http://immigrants.harpweek.com/ChineseAmericans/4ItemsByIndex/AntiChineseTopPage.htm

The major internment camp documenting this era that has been semi-preserved is Angel Island, in the San Francisco Bay of California. The California State Parks and Recreation Departments conducts tours and displays educational exhibits of the period. A tour of the dilapidated upstairs of one of the internment buildings is a must see - 150 year old Chinese poems etched into the tack walls still provide a haunting visage of the storied period.

Students of western US mining history must realize and acknowledge this dark chapter.

SECOND US INTERNMENT PHASE
1913-1946

The second major period of US internment camps began during the buildup to WWI and culminated with policy formulation and logistical execution during WWII. Based upon nationalistic and xenophobic political protection measures which later morphed into both the more predictable economic espionage tactics and a further sinister anthem; this period birthed the current political correctness ideology.

A series of presidential Executive Orders provided for the detainment of enemy aliens, sympathizers and subversives. The FBI was given promulgation of these orders. Eventfully, one of the primary determinants was that an individual was classified no longer as a US citizen, but as a Japanese-American or an Italian-American. This use of the hyphen to distinguish a less equal personage served as a root of the current political correct use of the hyphen terminology today and introduced the concept of 'otherness' as a basis for state action against an ethnic class of naturalized US citizens.

Look up the December 6, 1939 directive to Chicago Bureau Special Agent in Charge from J. Edgar Hoover. Look up subsequent directives dated between June 15 and October 18th 1941.

Read: The Internment of German Americans, German Americans in the World Wars; K. G. Saure, 1995.
Read: The Alien Registration Act of 1940

The architecture and infrastructure had been already developed for internment of US citizens by mid-1940, all that was left was a reason. This reason was gifted by the black flag attack at Honolulu. Thankfully, the Japanese high command had been successfully influenced to attack HI instead of the San Francisco bay, despite repeated and successful penetration of SF Bay coastal defenses ( submarine nets etc. ) by Japanese reconnaissance submarines and a very well established and productive surveillance network.

Two of my favorite places to learn more about this history are visits to Manzanar, CA and Bainbridge Island, WA.
Manzanar is located in beautiful Owens Valleys with a backdrop of the photogenic Sierra Nevada scarp. Currently operated by the National Park Service, tours are conducted during spring to fall and a self-guided car tour is also worth the time.

Bainbridge Island is the setting for the wonderful book Snow Falling on Cedars. The local population developed a very good interpretive museum built out of their own accord, with their own labor and dollars, using artifacts from their own barns and back brooms of memories. One of the best period exhibits in the country, period. Worth a visit.

The US internment story is typically spun as the US vs. the Japs.

Unfortunately, though the original cause of internment was economic displacement finding an easy home in the uneducated and out of work Joe-one-bottle laborer vitriol directed against the ethnicity of recent immigrants, the concept mutated into economic arbitrage and political correctness divisions.

Ultimately, the internment camps are designed not for those with a colour of skin disfavored by those in power, but for those with colour of thoughts disfavored by those in power. Look around you today.

THIRD US INTERNMENT PHASE
2001- ???

You figure this one out...

yesterday I got a call from a banker who has been trying to give me $450k.

usually he just emails.

Yesterday he told me a bout their special red-hot %1 reduction offer, good for a limited time only. Also asked for any referrals I could send his way.

Fair enough.

But he usually just emails...

Mr. Disney: very good call
On drooy to 1.5

King Tut collection to return to USA next may in Los Angeles. First time in states since NY exhibit in late 70?s. y?all know what happened shortly after that w/ au interest.
Gata be a sign from the gods...

not being cute here:
1. go to your local telephone book;
2. proceed to the yellow pages and and call up every listed dealer under 'coins';
3. ask them what current ask for bags are ( $1,000 face or 1000 dollars ) ;
4. Dollars are often sold in half bags - since note every one can realistically carry 1000 ounces around without back injury risk [or hopefully repetitive motion disorder].

there are several positive benefits to buying locally, even if there is a cheaper price elsewhere.

namely:
1. building rapport with a dealer to get future decent quotes and advice
2. help keep local dealers in business. some day you may want to sell that bag.
3. when that day comes, you may well get the best quote from the guy who sold it to you. ( for example, sometimes large amounts of 100oz bars require assay tests before someone will offer cash. if you try to sell from the person you bought from, not likely to be an issue. )
4. save postage and handling
5. save insurance costs ( and hassle )
6. most importantly, but also most sublimely, there is a hard-to-quantify cost for being discreet. buying a bag at a local store, then slipping the bag into a duffle bag or bowling bag, then discreetly transferring to your car, then from your car to your home safe has a certain comfort of mind that you do not receive when big national dealer delivers via courier. that is, why let ANYBODY else know what you are keeping at home?

fight globally, buy locally.

many do not want new power plants in this corner of the state - the cleanest air shed in the lower 48.

Visited 5 antique shops in Seattle over the weekend, even the paper purveyor at the fish place. Not one of them had any scripophily. Two of them had no idea what i was talking about.

I have a hard time believing all the klondike paper rests in dawson...

last hour she stated how she was recommending gold and gold stocks 'a couple years ago when gold was at $230 an ounce'.

Wow, she's pretty good, eh?

We thought is a steal deal during the back-and-fill days a couple years ago between 260 and 291.
(Gold has not been below 250 in decades).

As antithically anti au-bug as bubby brinker is, his alternate shills take hyperbolic obfuscation to new definitions...

mining micronomics: power, water rights, labor issues, environmental issues, permitting, neighborly relations, political chits, infrasructure, indemnification...

only what counts is how much EVERYBODY with perceived skin in the game decides it should cost you to get it out, and then how much you should keep ( let alone how much it is worth )

Only a fool would do that! I been looking to buy dollars at every opportunity.

uncirculated peace dollars,
variety morgans,
junk morgans,
green pcgs holders,
ikes in the bank drawers...

( unc peace dollars: if it was good enough for benny binion, good enough for mercury )

looks good to me.

...except for the name change
...except hmy screwing it all up

how come this always happens to ME?

IAM upset!

During the height of the ‘just say no to drugs' campaign cover for the guns/drugs carry trade

Still remember a gibbons quote from this height of the anti-drug campaign ( which set the stage in so many ways, built so many apparatus and mechanisms for private wealth revocation by the govt., that will be perfected during the next round of "war on the people and their ability to conduct commerce unfettered" - war on terrorism ) where the then-candidate proudly proposed to all assemble his favor of conducting mandatory government drug tests on public school children, including kindergartners.

http://www.rgj.com/news/stories/html/2004/10/26/83703.php?sp1=rgj&sp2=Business&sp3=Business&sp5=RGJ.com&sp6=news&sp7=business

big thoughts! very large thoughts. encompassing- all-of-mankind type of thoughts!

looks like he formulated his next big thought:
psssstt, hey NV miners. Why not help me re-write the 1872 minig act? I promise, it will be GOLD for YOU. Shorten the paperwork and everything.

I've been watchin those ideas of yours, and others of same ilk:
Nationalize the mines,
Socialize the cost,
Forfeited Prophets to the Pols

know that the come line odds offer the best bet in the house, the only free odds

and shortly return to the slots (mutual funds) with mostly the worse odds in the house

B) The committee in charge of distributing the funds ins comprised of those member organizations that will receive the funds

So even though some patents may go to the State via UCDavis, berkely, san diego; other patents will likely go to private sector via Stanford and the bio-companies

very happy with the ( long term ) trade and today’s fill.

Bought in late 01/early 02 before the merger; stock price went up; management improved; personal position increased over time; recent price and brand strength; capital gains tax decreased.

Life as a bug is good.

Although I still expect very good things for this company, I wanted to sell:
A ) into recent strength
B ) and sit out the reverse split accounting adjustments

( etrade has screwed this type of thing up before )

will take a look again later.

(KGC to close out 3:1 reverse split from 1/31/03 week of Nov. 28)

DOWN
- production down 3rd year in a row
- jobs down

UP
- claims 13%
- POG
- production costs 4.4%
- miners salary 7.2%
- fuel, water, permits, etc.
- attacks on 1872

Tiffany gets in a tiff over precious metals. Maybe because their product, diamonds, has lost so much luster (and market share). Here is what the dirty gold campaign has to say: http://www.earthworksaction.org/ewa/home.cfm

People will get sore when they realize when they thought they was buyin' the Glamis/barrick Millenium project up in humboldt by typing in GLG, they accidentally got shaboozled by getting more paper when they mistakenly keyed in GLD.

footer: having bought the ticker GOLD twice before, only because of these four letters in a row- and making decent $ each time; i now am at a point of consternation determining if the same road to profit projects itself even with the vowel missing... )

volunteered at the SPCA a few years back. Almost as depressing as the VA hospital. More recently, one of my roommates had her kitten eaten by a coyote. She couldn't understand why I failed to recognize the event as a tragedy...

"Great Basin Mine Watch wanted a $60 million trust fund, which was a figure that came up in studies of what it would cost to monitor and control groundwater quality for up to 20,000 years."

*most superfund sites, when they cant be clean-closed, have 30-year monitoring periods

* yucca mountain nuclear depository only has a 10,000 year event horizon

"They're assuming a 7 percent growth on a fund, but I don't know anyone who has gotten a return like that lately," Rosen said.

Umm, NEM itself has been returning better than that...

good stuff

REgarding potential buyou of CBJ by pdg as I somewhat concur and actually sold some PDG (upon new 52-week high) to buy cbj. I had lambasted pdg management here several times since 2000 b4 just turning a favored eye toward her a few months ago as she began breakout. They have been making very good decisions lately, spurred on only b.c. they knew I was watching ‘em.

I don’t think abx will go for cbj. Seems they be looking elsewhere within the state.

dated her last year, had a great fling with that little tart Ivanhoe (6.30 to 11 in 4 weeks)

Well, I am starting to have wistful reminisces about the affair. Not sure what it means. Probably nothing a good 3 day binge won’t solve. Maybe I should just go see a movie or sumthin..

52 week high. Helped by upgrade by some chump. U gata Luv it; most the other analysts are negative, as the stock reaches 52 week highs.

sure, it don’t compare to gss, cde and the like, but 25% in 4 months will help the cause.

And my shining victory over the oppressive foes of decapitilization - which deserves many moons of glory and exultation from the 52dimensions of the internet- is to bring a resource stock to the table that nobody else has tasted b4.

an full of more lies than all the cde/gss/wht/iag/hmy/gfi reams of merger mailer garbage mailed in the last five months combined

Change the constitution, so arnie can get elected, so he can change the constitution…

ain't the only dark shadow on the horizon.

still a little time to shed some light into the nooks and crannies...

bobbie brinker 'splaining what a terrible investment au is ( again/still with a lil more vigor covering up a lot less ammunition and self-belief ) , or

sub-kudlow crowing about his DOW buy 750 points ago?

KerrMcGee ( look up KMG chart. nice divvy 2! )
pioche
silver

figure 8 it out yet?

how bout this one:
israel
ormat
hydro

don't get 2 boolean on me here...

inventory of US silver coinage, and instead focus on moving more schlock.

indicative of supply, softening market?

1. I passed over some comic books at the yard sale to buy an old book on paper currency...

2. The last three 'estate sales' i attended were primarily three year old chinese plastic wares...

Earthlink abandoned a closet full of servers. Nobody would bid the 2$ minimum for the whole lot. Too much time and effort cleaning out the rental pad and taking the stuff to the dump. Sad thing is, there was more than 2$ in copper wire therein - destined for the dumpster.

gotta feeling that type of thing won't go on forever...

10.11.04 Our government spend the day in quality time discussion over the coming National ID.

NOTE: The esteemed leaders buried this along with pork under an emergency 81B dollar on the future 20 generation installment plan during the week of May 9th 05.

they USED to spend quality time spraying biological agents, such as Serratia marcescens, over civilian populations to test dispersion and fate models.

at least they outsourced these jobs too.
now we can moan the lack of a quality flu shot.

VX,
Sarin,
Bacillus globigii,
Coxiella burnetii ( OU ) ,
Staphylococcal enterotoxin
Tularamia, anthrax, parrot fever, Q fever, botulism, Rocky Mountain
spotted fever, and
Escherichia coli.

of course, that's just they've admitted to date.

first time ever. apparently got REALLY excited when she inquired into some currency funds.

i had told myself that this day would serve as a sell signal. Perhaps portending a ST double top in POG?

the modifiers are:
1. he had telecasted some au bullishness when suggesting 'no more than 15% exposure to metals' three years ago; and
2. based on his reported giddiness and rant, apparently no other of his clients are sniffing the gold tree yet...

some thought the day would not be seen again.

this pit has already gobbled two towns, Ruth and Rieptown.

Hopefully the new work either fills some of the many empty buildings in Ely, or eats them too.

http://www.rgj.com/news/stories/html/2004/10/05/82051.php?sp1=rgj&sp2=Business&sp3=Business&sp5=RGJ.com&sp6=news&sp7=business

That the Suze Orman show runs so many commercials for lawyers peddling to those with losses in the stock markets?

One other key place to visit in order to understand California history is what the Chinese called GOLD ISLAND. We now call it Angel Island. Though looking only and absolutely beautiful in the heart of San Francisco Bay, this island served as quarantine/internment camp supporting the Chinese Exclusion Act and holds secrets dark and deep. This period of history, though brief, is Essential to the story of western gold mining camps. Do yourself a favor, and visit the upstairs floor of the old -hospital- that held some of the more despondent 'guests' ( some of whom waited two years for the paperwork to clear, if they were so lucky ) . They etched their poems of sorrow into the walls.

Thought the plaster peels and the building is falling down, some of these poems are still there...

Served as home to both the Buffalo Soldiers and Pershing. Founded by the Spanish in 1776, this longest continually occupied fort in North America has operated under three Armies. Parts of the original Spanish adobe wall comprise the Officers Club at the top of the parade ground. Just yards away are cannons that served in the Philippines, currently marking the spot where Perhing's house burned down - killing his wife and son ( s? ) . Her ghost is said to be one haunting the Officers;s Club. The Buffalo Soldiers served as Roosevelt's personal guard upon his visits to the Presidio, and patrolled much of the federales land around the turn of the century throughout the state of Ca, including Yosemite and other prized possessions. Some amazing stories ring throughout this post, one of the most expensive real estate parcels in the world...

The Presidio served as embarkation/disembarkation for all pacific theatre wars/actions America conducted, including the Philippines. Many of those Phillipinos served the US Navy and used that route to gain entry and citizenship into the US, helping to build the city I live in.

LOTS of gold moved through that parcel!

Because the post is served by a combined sanitary/storm sewer, all metals ( including coins, military artifacts such as buttons etc. ) collect in the sewers. I have seen some VERY NICE stuff that had been hunted out of those sewers. Likely some still left...

Basically, any story on California's history and her role supporting American adventures in the Pacific Theatre require a study on the Presidio.

Well worth the trip...

Sacramento, Ca. 10.2.2004 Anatomy of a Coin Show

Mercury proffered his 4 dollar scrip as admission, yet admittance denied. "?Oh, you have to get a ticket at the box office" ( coin show was at the convention center downtown ) .

Apparently, the USD has depreciated so much now that a little orange piece of rectangular paper bearing the 'Admit One' stamp has more value then the greenback version. ( Or, just another way this booming economy creates jobs. You see, somebody ELSE had to convert my scrip into the ticket, thus adding value to the economy. )

Although there was no line to get into the coin show, there was - naturally a line to get the ticket, 30 people worth of line. Thankfully, I was only in line two people's worth b4 a kind soul pointed out: "This is the line for the art show, the coin show line ( empty ) is over there".

Once in, the admittance doyenne kindly offered a souvenir new Jefferson Nickel and a state quarter. A rebate, if you will. ( Probably cost more to print the 'Admit One' ticket than the modern 'nickel' )

About 45 dealers or so, and D-E-A-D as can be.

Now the only reason I ventured in this show ( unannounced and without typical and proper entourage ) was b.c. mrs. mercury just happened to have occasion to run an errand in downtown Sac. not more than a few blocks away and thus getting there took no effort on my part. Hence, my time on the floor was rather limited, not enough time to really search inventory in the proper fashion. The luxury of time lacking, I could not enjoy at length the afternoon nor their inventory, stopping and selecting at my leisure for those coins appealing to my particularly jaundiced eye as am wont to do. My tack, therefore, defaulted to looking for a couple of the key coins that I knew I needed for my paltry and laughable collection of American Ag.

So as a shopper armed with a well honed list begging off the end-cap hawkers, my circles as a vulture around the floor folded in concentrically as I narrowed the list of tables from 45 to just a scarce few.

This meant leaving out, for instance:
1. those whose shop I already frequent, and thus knew the inventory, stopping just long enough to exchange pleasantries;
2. A couple foreign and paper dealers ( though I snagged a token scripophily sample on the way out ) ;
3. A few who obviously specialized where I did not.

At this point one might note I did not list "the tables with throngs and throngs of people crowding out the hapless mercuious one without a spot at the craps table?") .

No, the dealers had PLENTY of attention to spread around, as they were almost about as numerous as the lookers.

Of course, this meant that the time honored coin show social intercourse could play out along these lines:

looker: "how much do you want for this coin"?
dealer: oh, I don't know, let me remember how much I paid for it, and then [stage left] to his buddy three tables over "hey sam, what did I pay for this three shows ago".

Or how about this one: I was just browsing, this time actually taking the time to look at a few of the more probable inventories, when the dealer asked for what I was looking for. Very specifically ( such as 'raw' [ not slabbed] ) mercury divulged said information comprising the date and mint of said auspicious coin. At that point, the dealer immediately called over to another table: "hey -Fred-, have you a such and such". Upon which -Fred- immediately ( and opportunistically ) replied "sure, I've got it" although naturally could not produce allegedly held coin now in abeyance. At which point I inquired into just THREE other coins, of which he could offer ONE. And it was SLABBED! And it was slabbed by ANACS!!! And OF COURSE, the coin did not make grade.

And after handing it back to him without so much as a sigh on my part as a courteous and brief glance, he pronounced to himself and the one other gent present at his table: "Oh, you must be one of THOSE TYPES who ask for all kinds of hard to find coins, and when finally presented one, REFUSES to buy it."

Not missing a sixty-fourth triplet off the top of the scale circle, I replied: "Well, if you are going to provide the color, allow me to add the play-by-play edgewise and note for the scorecard that you had ONE of the FOUR coins I asked about, after stopping here upon referral by another, to whom I mentioned I was not looking for slabs, and yet your ONE coin WAS slabbed, by ANACS. And gee, here it was sitting in your case collecting dust just like the one ANACS coin I had the mispleasure of buying and have not been to unload either b.c. it is so obviously overgraded". ( my other anacs came from that haven of honesty - EBAY ) . This interplay got the attention in the form of a muffled giggle from the other gent present who, in a wonderfully meditative and mediative type of way quipped immediately "well, you could always crack it out [of the slab] and resubmit it and take your loss later instead of now" to a couple rejoined well-deserved laughs.

I purchased at another table, getting two coins I wanted in exchange for one I no longer wanted. The one I offed was one of those one-ounce 'Grant Wood/American Gothic' artsy-fartsy type of coins that serve as fine fare when bought as POG mines the bottom of the trend line and serve as even better course when offed as gold bumps against the upper trend line ( such as where $419 might be just about now after a decent little pop last week ) . The art coin is always the cheapest that one can buy at spot when nobody else is buying, but doesn't sell as well as something obviously marked with fineness, weight, or ( guffaw ) $50.

After just a little back and forth ( at this point my sickly wife was awaiting our exit ) we swapped at bid; he got some liquidity and I received what takes time to find, one of the more rare fare. Fair enuff.

Speculating on the ride home as to why the coin show was not well attended ( as one dealer put it: 'wholesale is moving, retail is dead' ) I came up with the following potentialities:

a. nobody in Sacto has cash. Everybody there has gotten into a house they can't afford b.c. they could trade up on the easy credit and low teaser APRs/interest only jumbos and therefore haven't hundred dollar bills to lay on the coin table but can go to the art show and put a painting on lay-away financed for 48 months to fill the cavernous and empty-as-new house.
b. Those of use who have been buying in earnest the last 4 or 5 years have done well. But lets face it, this market is toppy. Many coins are double or triple what they had been in the not distant pass, fewer seem anxious to hold a four or five-bagger at the top.
c. Especially if the top coincides with a rising bullion feeding on uncertainty about the direction the nation or world may be taking, or continuing.
d. The weather was nice, will change for the worse in a few weeks.
e. Local market conditions
f. See letter 'a' again.

So, what was it like in YOUR neighborhood today?

( Names, facts and most everything else rooted to reality changed herein to protect the innocence and otherwise entertain myself. )

me and a geologist friend had a discussion on the lower limits of visible gold in the ground.

My contention was that the naked ( but good ) human eye could discern gold at around 20-30 ppm. He independently speculated the level around 35-50ppm. So, perhaps somewhere in the middle.

caveat: my eyes are better than his
caveat2: dependent upon geology. you mileage may vary.

any other ideas, speculations, or studies out there?

The economy of the next hundred years will be powered by plant oils ( bio-diesel ) . The economy of the next hundred years will again be denominated in metals. ( After this brief period of aberration ) .

- a complete mind feck!

The counter thought is: well, some single pieces of silver or gold ( as coins ) sell for hundreds or thousands ( even millions ) of dollars. Yes, this is true. But, the vast majority of them ( by number ) can be had for 50 cents or less.

So, these coins are only valuable because they are rare, right? And lack of supply causes demand and value. After all, WHT has millions of shares outstanding. The Hanover Mining Company may only have several thousand.

But if the paper was valuable only because it was rare, then any pretty drawing I make on an 8x11 sheet should be worth big bux, after all, it is unique-one-of-a-kind. Factually, it is worthless; becoming only valuable if I personally become either famous or infamous ( and that is a longshot ) .

If the paper was valuable only because it was old, then every handwritten letter which is 100 years old would sell for 5$ a page. Heck, both unique AND old. But no, unless of some historical importance, or of the hand of a known name, they too are practically worthless.

And so, the great irony of the bankrupt mining company scrip. Only valuable b.c. it speaks to the former gold mining glories of days gone bye. Value by proxy; sprinkled with stardust long worn off. The paper shell is a newly prized commodity. Meanwhile, the ores are played, the minerals are gone, and the former mine and mill, nay ? the whole town and every one who lived and toiled therein ? lays as dust.

These stock parchments representing dot.coms were highly valued; at least the underlying shares were. then the company loses 80-90% of share and/or book value. so now there are worthless paper holders. but, under Gresham's law, inconvertible money drives out good. so, the scrip paper once again gains value. this second generation worth is not a representation of value - as stock, but rather a more direct relation - the paper itself is the underlying ( only ) asset.

interesting.

Shares (defunct paper stock certificates) of the Hanover Mining and Milling Company are selling on eBay for 3$ a share. This company has been bankrupt for decades! how many gold mining companies listed every day on the internet boards are selling for pennies! there must only be, what, 30-40 or so mining companies today selling for 3$ a share. and as recently as 2000 there were only a handful!

this BANKRUPT company WHICH HAS NOT TRADED FOR DECADES and has NO EQUIPMENT, NO RESERVES, NO INFRASTRUCTURE, is trading higher than BGO and WHT...

Real Property: Maybe they had, for instance, a jaw-crusher. Perhaps they depreciated it over a 27.5 year life. Enough years have passed such that this crusher could have been depreciated four cycles ( well, not legally ) . The crusher, should it have been put to any worthwhile use whatsoever, was scrapped and turned into another implement. More likely, the crusher has rusted and rotted in the surrounding sand.

Intellectual Interest: from a turn-of-the century miner?

Possessory Interest: HaH! Successor companies have been absolutely destroyed by possessory succession of previous mining interests. Mainly, the successor company has absorbed joint and several liability for a contaminated site that may cost thousands to clean up.

( Nobody here ever talks about TechComico problems with the federales re: metal pollution in lower watershed. A major story, all but silent. )

What about the gold?: How many companies that issued stock in 1902 actually became producers? The example of a jaw crusher is likely a hopeless dream in this case. More likely is Hanover went belly-up by the time the post office was constructed.

Now - The 2004 series $100 Federal Reserve Note (FRN) is worth more than the '02 mining scrip. And I seen ( and spent ) a whole lot more of the former than the latter.

Though, not near as much as my druthers would dictate.

This 'lil soul-sucker will set u back 13 shares of wht, bgo, or Hanover. Wonder what it will fetch in 2104?

Was the only one left. there used to be several. but hey, at least the recycling center next door is doing great business. nice to know that the aluminum cans will not lie fallow in the gutter too long...

a. those who bought sunshine many years ago and are hoping to windfall from the class action lawsuit

b. those who wish they would have bought srlm.pk two years ago

Permanent Open Market Operations:

"Monetary policy can be implemented through outright purchases or sales of securities, which permanently changes the size of the Federal Reserve's System Open Market Account ( SOMA ) portfolio."

http://www.ny.frb.org/markets/permanent.html

I would imagine that the fed's mr. Greengenes interpretation of securities is at least twice as cogent as his definition of money demonstrated at the Banking Subcommittee upon request from the good Mr. Paul.

In other words: For them it's a free market. For you, quite costly?

the medium through which international trade is conducted"

yep, just like gold and silver used to be, and horses before that, and seashells before that.

Let me offer another translation:
The world will support the USD, and fiat in general, at the point of a gun.

That is until that pre-set rollout date when the world will NOW support the chip and e-money...

A company can raise needed capital by generally one of three ways:
( financial misstatements and other outright theft notwithstanding )
1. sell stocks
2. sell bonds
3. borrow

The interest rate is at 40 year lows. Bonds pay diddly in interest. Banks do NOT want your money, they have literally tons of new paper they need to shovel out the door as it is.

Once upon a time a small company, just like an individual, had to meet certain criteria to conform. Those days are as gone honest money. ANYBODY can get a loan ( or 'credit' ) . The farther in debt you already are, the bigger the loan they will give you.

So, if a company can borrow cheap money, why issue stock or bonds?

From Nevada Mining Association Convention last week:

"During committee reports at last weekend's convention, Human Relations Committee Chairwoman Jan Munda of Cortez Gold Mines said the association did its own survey on wages and benefits and agreed that worker recruitment is a major challenge."

Per the Elko Daily Press the average pay in the metal mining sector last year was $67,795, up from $63,238 in 2002.

Nevada's mining industry directly employed 8,780 people in 2003, down from 8,860 in 2002 and 10,100 in 2001, according to the report

electricity
water
permits
transportation
bonds
fuel
training

and finally, labor

...how many other sectors experiencing wage increases? should say something or another...

the days of centralized power production and delivery are getting long in the tooth and short in the horizon

mass centralized power production and transport are numbered:

"A central goal, said Sierra Pacific President Jeff Ceccarelli, is additional in-house generation of electricity designed to reduce reliance on volatile outside energy markets that played a key role in the utility?s financial woes in recent years."

even if they could afford to mine ( and many clearly can't ) , who is left to do the work?

What's the average age of yer basic subterranean explorer?

Ain't no minor miners in the stripping business either.

Where is the labor pool coming from?

Look at the status of the world's great mining schools in the last 10 years...

U think ABX sniffed it out?

Got out of gold production to get into derivative production.
Now getting out of derivatives to get into power production.

Poor general motors ( holders ) , they're getting out of car production to get into derivative production ( GMACfin. ) just as derivatives about to get whacked...

The goals were:

Destabilize the region; promote ethnic and sectarian warfare - essentially promote the most base tribalism instincts of man.

Start and support Iraqi civil war, serving as a model for the coming US civil war II - amongst others

Accelerate the bankruptcy of the US

Undermine acceptance of US dollar

Provide rationale for US draft; H.R. 163

Destabilize the current system of petro development, transport, and delivery; support the need and construction of the nabucco pipeline

Force the fools to accept depletion of the SPR

Force the US populace to accept detention without charge or due process, and torture as valid police methods

Promote hostility toward American citizens

Turn American state citizens against US military ( the organization that had most opposed NOW/bilderberg factions currently exercising primary political influence )

Set up permanent military base in mideast for future operations in Iran, Syria, and possible Georgia and Turkey

Provide access and opportunity to conduct experiments on next generation psyops, black bag, re-education camps; industrial and military technology; biological weapons program.

Practice exercise for civilian detention roundup, detention, interrogation and torture.

The practice exercises will prove useful for rounding up US citizens during the next martial law following the financial panic.

Enrich the soils furrowed by 9/11 that were planted with seeds of Patriot I which will yield endemic crops that will be sold as genetically and politically modified gruel known as Patriot II.