RSSAustralian Parliament's Breathalyzer is No Solution for U.S.
By Chip Hanlon | December 04, 2008 | 8:52 PM | 0 Comments
Uh-oh... the shenanigans in Australia's parliament may soon come to a screeching halt. Apparently, MPs there have engaged in one too many drunken brawls and/or strip teases, so now the whole bunch may be forced to take a breathalyzer test before entering parliament.
Before this nutty idea crosses the ocean, let me be the first to say I'm adamantly opposed to the adoption of this plan here in the America, and not just because this blog is an Irish guy's pub, and not even because those Aussie MPs sound like a lot of fun.
First, I can't think of anything better than waking up one morning and reading how a couple of old gas bags like, say, Jerry Lewis (R-CA) and John Murtha (D-PA) got steamed and punched each other's lights out. Don't destroy my dream with your damned breathalyzers!
Second, and more practically speaking: the only way to even tolerate half the nonsense passed out of Congress is to tell one's self that everyone in the place must be on something.
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How Not to Find a Pirate
By Chip Hanlon | December 04, 2008 | 5:14 PM | 0 Comments
With all the hub-bub about the Somali pirates lately, a reporter at Slate went on a trek to find and talk to some real-life pirates himself. Not much luck, pretty funny article: How (Not) to Find a Pirate in the Strait of Malacca
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Pento vs. the Deflationists on CNBC Yesterday
By Chip Hanlon | December 04, 2008 | 12:26 PM | 2 Comments
These clips will probably show up on GF's video section later, but I wanted to chime in briefly about our Michael Pento's conversation yesterday with friend, Larry Kudlow, and the rest of his guests. Like Pento, I cannot relate at all to the deflation argument, but the mustard-seeders were giving it to him pretty good. You can judge for yourself who's right by watching below.
First, I wanted to correct one item: in supporting the deflation case, at one point Larry said gold was down 40%, which is innacurate. In fact, it is down approximately 26% from its highs... not thrilling at first blush, but that number looks pretty fantastic when compared to all other asset classes, save the US dollar and Treasuries. Look at this list (foreign markets shown in US dollar terms, which is what matters to US investors, of course):
S&P 500: -41%/ Canada: -52%/ Brazil: -60%, UK: -52%/ Germany: -50%/ Japan: -37%/ Australia: -59% (WOW!), Crude: -67%
Everything's getting sold in a forced deleveraging, including gold, but the yellow metal's performance looks pretty darned good when comparing its actual-- not overstated-- decline vs. other asset classes. This one's certainly a feather in the cap of the gold bugs.
Part 1: 
Part 2:
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The Auto Industry Solution is so Simple
By Chip Hanlon | December 03, 2008 | 7:55 PM | 2 Comments
...it's all ball bearings these days. Oh, wait--I'm citing the wrong Chevy Chase movie there (Fletch).
After another day of begging and pleading by the automakers in front of Congress, it struck me: I have the perfect idea as to how to save the auto industry, and it's so simple!
The Wagon Queen Family Truckster. If the car makers would just promise to get back to building beauties like these, I'd say give 'em what they want!
Aw, heck...let's kick it up a notch and feature the Truckster in one of its many classic scenes:
...they don't make 'em like they used to.
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