Quote of the week
“[I]t’s absurd that the entire world is hanging on the words of Ben Bernanke. He has been wrong at literally every major point in the housing bubble and then crisis. So why should we care about his predictions concerning the economy or his recommendations for how to end the slump?” – Robert P. Murphy
Guerrilla Jurors: Sticking it to Leviathan
by Don Doig and Stewart Rhodes
“The power of the jury to vote according to conscience and judge the merits, fairness, constitutionality and applicability of the law itself, is the only real, undiluted power the individual citizens have in our system of government. If we are engaged in a struggle for our fundamental rights against governments on all levels, and we are, then we must view our role as partisan guerrillas, and we have a powerful yet peaceful tool at our disposal. It has been hidden from us, and we are intimidated into thinking it is not our right, but if we will summon the courage to grasp it, we can use jury veto power, or jury nullification, as a weapon in defense of liberty.” more… [A very good article, especially if you are unfamiliar with the powers of a jury.]
The Inside-Out World of Home Mortgages
by Doug French
“Nothing perks up the spirits like the coming of spring. Flowers are blooming and the birds are singing. The winter thaw is finally complete for most of the nation. But while yards are starting to bloom, home values are still dormant. The median sales price of a home in the United States has dropped to just over $159,000, the lowest level since 2002.” more…
A Good Military a Terrible Thing to Waste
by Charles V. Peña
“The speed with which U.S. military forces were able to begin combat operations in Libya last month, following the president’s order to intervene in the unfolding civil war, is a tribute to the professionalism and combat readiness of the U.S. armed forces.
“But it also should give us great pause. Unless the United States has been attacked, military intervention should be a very difficult, sobering decision requiring painstaking reflection.
“The trouble is: with U.S. forces now deployed all over the globe, military intervention has become too easy. If it wasn’t so easy perhaps we would do less of it.” more…
Regulars
- The Bain Report
- Failure Friday
- Five failed banks this week.
Other Stuff
- Ann Arbor City Council considers placing surveillance cameras around the city.
- Six common herbs and why you should eat them.
- News about a year long Federal sting operation on raw milk producers. Your tax dollars at work.
- Former Miss USA molested by TSA personnel. More calls for TSA nullification.
- Keynes versus Hayek round two. Video 10:10. In case you missed the first round – Fear the Boom and Bust – check it out. It’s a classic at this point I’d say.
And now the numbers…
DOW Jones Industrials – 12,810.54 (+304.55/2.44%)
S&P 500 – 1,363.61 (+26.23/1.96%)
VIX – 14.75 (+0.06/0.41%)
CSI 300 (China) – 3,192.723 (-107.219/-3.25%)
BSE 500 (India) – 7,427.14 (-155.13/-2.05%)
MICEX (Russia) – 1,741.84 (-52.12/-2.91%)
BOVESPA (Brazil) – 66,132.859 (-925.164/-1.38%)
Nikkei 225 (Japan) – 9,849.74 (+167.53/1.73%)
RICI (Commodities) – 4,405.53 (+15.24/0.35%)
Oil/bbl (Brent) – 125.89 (+1.90/1.53%)
Corn/bu – 756.50 (+12.00/1.61%)
Wheat/bu (CBT) – 801.25 (-33.50/-4.01%)
Rough Rice (CBOT) – 14.93 (+0.62/4.33%)
Copper/lb – 417.90 (-24.00/-5.43%)
Gold/oz – 1,556.40 (+52.60/3.50%)
Silver/oz – 48.599 (+2.522/5.47%)
EUR-USD – 1.4817 (+0.0255/1.75%)
USD-JPY – 81.115 (-0.715/-0.87%)
USD-BRL – 1.5754 (+0.0114/0.73%)
USD-HKD – 7.7662 (-0.0042/-0.05%)
NZD-USD – 0.8088 (+0.0065/0.81%)
3 Month Treasury – 0.04 (-0.01/-20.00%)
2 Year Treasury – 0.60 (-0.05/-7.69%)
10 Year Treasury – 3.29 (-0.10/-2.95%)
30 Year Treasury – 4.40 (-0.06/-1.35%)
3 Month LIBOR – 0.27 (UNCHG)
U.S. Public Debt (official) – 14,282,598,097,540.80 (-8,190,563,709.70/-0.06%)
Baltic Dry Index (BDIY:IND) – 1,269.00 (+15.00/1.20%)
It’s been a good week. My mom visited from ABQ. Went to the Detroit Zoo Friday. The “official” commencement was on Saturday. Actually believe it or not there was at least three different ceremonies I could have attended. We actually attended the official undergraduate commencement at Michigan Stadium. That’s it. I’m not too big on all of that stuff, but my mom being in town, I think that seeing Michigan Stadium is a must. Anyway, it’s official. I’m out.
Meanwhile, check it out, there’s a new Keynes vs. Hayek rap. This one I think is a little less catchy, but probably has better content than the first. It’s worth the watch whatever the case.
Otherwise since it’s already Sunday I’m going to call it here. I hope everyone had a nice weekend. Have a great week!
