Trading and Investing
Modern Monetary Theory Is Just Plain Stupid
The suddenly simple answer to funding the Green New Deal, Medicare-for-all, free college, and two Teslas in every garage, making the rounds as Modern Monetary Theory (MMT), is a joke.
Only no one should be laughing.
MMT is not only dangerous for reasons that no one’s bothering to bring up, but also it’s just plain stupid.
The Real Problem(s) With the Fed
There’s a problem with the Federal Reserve.
Actually, there are tons of problems with the Fed.
Besides the fact that they shouldn’t exist at all, they are always behind the curve on everything.
Take interest rates, for example.
One of the biggest things the Fed does (the biggest is bailing out their too-big-to-fail bank constituents when they implode into insolvency from their greed) is manipulate interest rates.
The Fed’s original fake mandate was to manipulate rates to effect stable prices – in other words, to curb inflation when it reared its ugly head and guard against deflation when it cast a shadow on the economy.
Not that it matters, because it is what it is, but the Fed’s timing in manipulating rates is mostly what causes inflation or deflation.
Today, we’re going to talk about the wool that’s been pulled over everyone’s eyes, and what the Fed should be doing.
But first, I’m going to share something amazing and potentially very profitable.
Elon Musk’s Twitter Ego Could Destroy Tesla
Elon Musk, the founder, chief executive officer, and former chairman of Tesla Inc. (NasdaqGS:TSLA), is in trouble with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)…
Again.
This time, he’s in hot water for doing what he agreed not to do in the September 2018 settlement he made with the SEC over his infamous August 2018 “Am considering taking Tesla private at $420. Funding secured” tweet.
What happened this time and what led up to it isn’t just a problem for Musk, it’s a problem for Tesla.
Elon Musk and Jussie Smollett Have the Same Problem
Poor Elon Musk, he just can’t get enough attention. Apparently, Jussie Smollett has the same problem.
Good thing for one of them there’s a difference between them.
In terms of their crimes, in Smollett’s case the wrongdoing is alleged, while in Musk’s case he signed his own admission.
I’m not interested in Jussie Smollett’s big part on a waning show on the small screen or his small life off-screen and his desire to be on TMZ, which turned into national news.
But I am very interested to see if the TMZ-lite of Wall Street, the SEC, slaps Elon Musk on the wrist again for his latest crime – or does its job properly, once and for all.
You can follow the Smollett saga on TV (be careful what you wish for, Jussie).
But you’re not going to get the “inside edition” of what’s happening with Tesla Inc. (NasdaqGS:TSLA), what could happen to Musk, and how you can make money on the situation anywhere…
Except for right here at Wall Street Insights & Indictments.
What the New JPMorgan Cryptocurrency Means for the Price of Bitcoin
The price of bitcoin rose 8.6% from the end of last week to yesterday, February 18, on news that JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) was launching the first-ever major bank-backed cryptocurrency, JPM Coins.
Apparently, after Jamie Dimon, JPMorgan Chase’s chairman and CEO, called bitcoin a “fraud,” saying in October 2017, “If you’re stupid enough to buy it, you’ll pay the price for it one day,” the big bank honcho has had second thoughts.
Something changed for Dimon and JPMorgan Chase, and today I’ll tell you what a bank coming to market with its own coin means for bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies – and it isn’t what you think.
Europe’s Canary in the Coal Mine is About to Croak
Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft (NYSE:DB)’s “troubles” aren’t just a concern for the survival of Germany’s largest bank; they’re the same troubles most European banks face.
Frighteningly, those troubles collectively threaten the future of the European Union and, by extension, global markets.
That makes Deutsche Bank Europe’s canary in the coal mine.
Bond and equity markets better be listening to the chirping noise coming from Frankfurt, because it’s getting louder.
Let’s talk about what’s ailing Deutsche Bank and what DB tells us about other European banks. Then we’ll get into how the European Central Bank (ECB) is the common thread in their flawed knitting, and what could happen to bond and equity markets if the canary croaks.
Buybacks Aren’t Inherently Evil, But…
Last week, senators Chuck Schumer (D. NY) and Bernie Sanders of (D. VT) co-authored an opinion piece in the New York Times titled, “Limit Corporate Buybacks” with the subtitle “Corporate self-indulgence has become an enormous problem for workers and for the long-term strength of the economy.”
They’re right that buybacks should be limited, but wrong about their impact on workers and the economy.
So, today I’ll tell you what the senators got right, what they got wrong, and how buybacks should be treated.
European Growth is Slowing, Quickly: Look Out Below
Growth across the European Union is slowing, quickly and dramatically. On top of that, Brexit looms.
For interest rates, the euro, European stock markets, and Eurozone banks, that means, look out below.
Something’s happening across Europe, and you need to be aware.
Things could get bad, and you need to know where to take cover.
Here’s what’s you need to know, and what you can do in the meantime to potentially profit…
“I’m From the Federal Reserve and I’m Here to Help”
Most Americans would probably agree, if the Federal Reserve hadn’t come to the rescue in the 2008 financial crisis, the United States (and the world) would have sunk into another Great Depression.
However, most Americans don’t realize that the Fed caused the financial crisis of 2008 by keeping interest rates artificially too low for too long, fostering “irrational exuberance” and insanely leveraged mortgage bubbles.
How do you know I’m telling you the truth?
Ask yourself two questions:
- What caused the financial crisis?
- Where was ground zero?
If you don’t immediately and automatically, instinctively and historically know the answers to both questions, I’m afraid you don’t know what you don’t know.
The Fed’s Announced Triple Mandate is the Final Nail in the Free Market’s Coffin
The Federal Reserve System, the privately-owned central bank that most Americans believe is a department of the U.S. government, just publicly gave itself the last hammer it needs to nail shut the coffin they shoved free markets into.
By admitting it’s going to “think about financial conditions,” meaning the stock market, when exercising control over interest rates, the Federal debt, consumer and producer prices, employment, the economy, and investor returns, the Fed cemented its position as chief of the new command economy.