Robo-Shock: This Future ISN’T What You Think

Once again, as we sit twiddling our thumbs waiting for the Federal Reserve non-decision on raters today, we venture into the swamp of robotics as we try to see ahead through the haze; cast by a blizzard of press releases and hype.

What we know at the outset is that the Great Depression was largely caused by economic displacements.  Farmers, who raised draft animals, had their livelihoods ripped out from under them by “traction motors” (tractors, we call ’em nowadays).  This – coupled with a huge migration into cities and falling commodity prices due to mass production which was coming into its own, combined to totally trash the global economy.

This time around, we are seeing different kinds of migration (gender, illegals, drought-driven) and we’re seeing a different kind of job-minimization occur driven by business process computing and our friendly robotics.

This morning we vision a bit.  Then this weekend, we will ponder whether we get the deflationary collapse like the USA Great Depression experience, or whether the passage of TPP by Corporations which are all over it like white on rice will demand “reparations” from debt-stuffed civilian governments that will fire off a Weimar-like hyperinflation.

I think of this as the diabetic economy:  Blood sugar too low and you’re dead, blood sugar too high and…  Except instead of the sweetness of sugar, we’re dealing with the vinegary aftertaste of excess debt.

All of which leads to the question:  So now what?

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TPP (Son of NAFTA) and Other Lies

They’ll be back  TPP ain’t over yet.

You know, I got a real kick out of my local Congressoid’s canned letter to me on the Secret Consumer Busting legislation embodied in TPP.  Still secret, by the way…even  after a vote.  Look surprised.  It’ll screw you…that’s why.

So this morning, we take some temperature readings on the last time the USA decided to “regulate itself into prosperity” – which, if you haven’t noticed, doesn’t work.  At least on this side of the border.

As always for subscribers, we won’t use a single expletive in laying out the data (there’s lot of it).  The challenge may well be whether you will be able to hold back the spew when you’re done reading.

Trade deals that have been negotiated since Bill Clinton’s other big lie (NAFTA will be good for us…) It’s just another way corporations have found to monetize hostage populations.

Nice world, huh?

Fortunately, we have coffee and aspirin this morning, so help yourself and we’ll warm up with a few trading model data points and a learned discussion of why the Federal Reserve will likely raise rates sooner than later…in order to more perfectly replay 1929…

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Would Raising the MinWage Fix Anything?

A key topic rolls around today…as we have finally gotten rid of some vicious attack code aimed at UrbanSurvival.  We always know we’re “close to the bone” in our analysis projects when the website attacks ratchet up.

But it matters not.  We know that the robots are coming, and we know that earlier thoughtful analysis was likely right on point (e.g. not enough jobs to go around).  Which is what the Bilderberg people are worrying about right now.

So this morning, some expert commentary from my friend Howard Hill (Finance Monsters) about how a bump up in the minimum wage would impact the economy.

With jobs on track to become about half as plentiful and in 10-years, or less, it’s not a trivial problem.

Especially if you like to eat, now and then.

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Selling Us Down the River? Saturated Consumers & the TPA/TPP

I suppose you want me to explain what the secret TPP / TPA has to do with Jade Helm, don’t you?  Well, fine…but it’s two cups worth of reading…Global government has been rolled out.

One of our ongoing problem with the “Constant Growth Model” of the economy is it blows up without growth.  The long and short of this one (we’ll get into details) is that if growth indeed slows significantly, we will have a serious problem with economic things blowing up around the whole Pacific Rim and a lot of it will be aimed our way.

And that gets us to the second (related) discussion point.  Namely, what exactly is in the proposed (and still secret) discussions about TPP?

Oh, just the handover of America should we welch on our unpayable debts to China and Japan.  So yes, that’s why TPP is a secret.

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Templates, Boundaries, and Logical Limits

Thanks to a subscriber in Nebraska, and a call from my consigliore Monday, we have some important new concepts that are percolating around under the surface of economic discussions.

As you know, I hold that doom-sayers are often incorrect.  While it is tempting to listen to them, it is often disastrous, as well, when comes to preserving one’s lifestyle, financial assets, and happiness.

At the same time, however, embracing the future must be done carefully, as well, because if BitCoin is any model, the dangerous of excess optimism is what leads to buying BitBubbles much as it led to buying tulips back in 1634.

So what are the thinking tools that can help us to avoid such pitfalls?  This morning we discuss three.

After – that is – we get a daily dose of headlines and considers our Charts and Trading Model.  Accompanied by coffee and toast.

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Peoplenomics Cruise Details

A number of emails I’ve sent out to subscribers who were interested in our up coming Sept. 6th seven-day cruise in the Caribbean didn’t make it to recipients, so this morning I’ve put together a page on the cruise and booking information.

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10-Years After: Some Personal Scoring

Ah, sorry to disappoint, but the topic this morning has nothing to do with the 19670’s Rock & Roll band by that name (Ten Years After video here).  With apologies to Alvin Lee.

Nevertheless, in terms of economics, I’d still “like to change the world” (which makes sense only if you lived the 70s) and to do so, it takes a certain ability to “be hard on self.”

So this morning, we roll back the time machine and go through some of the views proposed in 2005 and see how our track was doing back then and whether our calls then were really any good, or not.

Should be an interesting adventure… after coffee, Trading Model and a few of those distraction-inducing headlines that pass for “news” these days.

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Is the Internet Wrecking Infrastructure?

We consider (between the rain and power blinks here in Texas) how soon we start seeing some real declines in things like hotel, rental cars, and travel as business is moving more and more to video conferencing in lieu of travel?

And, we take a look at what our Trading Model is doing in the wake of the sell-off yesterday that closed the S&P below short-term support.

So grab the coffee….here comes a data dump…

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How to Turn Your Hobbies Into Cash

This being a holiday weekend, and since – as our Trading Model has been insisting, the market ain’t crashing – how about we spend some time penciling out ways to make money with your hobby?

We can evolve an approach that works with any hobby, but it takes a little thinking through the ‘How to get there part.”

Not to worry, my friend…that’s what Peoplenomics is all about – the really important parts about money…the parts we can enjoy…

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The Terrorism that Worries Me

In a phrase, it’s the “New Crime” that hasn’t been pulled off — year.  Think box-cutters.

This week,  we roll out some of my worst fears about the immediate future.  There are, like you couldn’t have figured it out without help, a lot of ways that a very small group of determined people, perhaps no more than a dozen, could wreak havoc on life in the U.S.

Today we consider the difficulty of protecting against such yet-top-be-pulled capers and recall that prior to D.B. Cooper, there was no crime of air piracy.  And, thanks to our enormous strides in technology, there are more new – and better – ways to commit crimes than ever before.

And we will ask the intriguing question:  Is it possible for government agencies to prevent crime, or is the only way to do it by ridding the country directly of people who would do in our way of life?

There we go…off into the Constitutional and due process problem.  But before we do that, let’s go through some of the things that keep me up at night worrying.  After coffee and charts, of course.  Then we get into the big question:  Is a concerted attack on motorcycle clubs in the works?

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A Pretty Good "Get Rich" Scheme

There are only two things the average American wants, these days:  To be “famous” and to “get rich.”

The problem with famous, of course, is that it doesn’t pay the bills.  And the benefit of “rich” is that you can buy fame – if you have enough money.

So this morning I lay out a pretty good “get rich” scheme. 

No, it’s not fast, but is has a very good chance of working – since most people don’t even bother trying to get rich; most sit around waiting for it to happen.  Then they get disappointed when it doesn’t.  Go figure.

So we’re off to the realities of “getting rich” after some coffee and a few significant headlines. Oh, and a check of our Trading Model, too…

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Is this Why We Prep? 1999 FN53

Universe is always having fun with us – often at my expense. 

So Tuesday, when I went down  to the airplane hangar (to make sure everything was coming along) sure enough, I got out of the truck (*with flat soled shoes on) and promptly fell on my butt in a mud puddle.

Hmmm…falling down, is it?

Sure enough, when I got home, the web was lighting up with word on this week’s “near pass” of asteroid 1999 FN53.

Hmmm…skip the personal planning discussion (that’s timeless) and let’s jump to this passing asteroid discussion because economic, quakes, wanderlust asteroids….they’re all important as hell around these parts.

But first the dollar drop and gold’s pop along with some retail sales yuck.

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A Quick Course in Stock Screening

I’ve given Elaine an interesting project:  Find some companies that she thinks we ought to invest in.   Having received approval for our minor parts change on the airplane, I think a trip to a casino somewhere would be interesting but options are far easier to play at home and you can make a lot more money at it.

Sounds simple enough until you start looking at the task in detail.  Then it becomes…well…daunting.

This morning we consider the problem of stock screening in some detail, consider some different approaches to sniffing out under-valued companies, and offer Mrs. Ure some ideas on how to organize her investment wagers.  (They are all gambles until they pay off, after which – if there is any money left – we can call ourselves “investors” rather than the more pejorative term “wild-eyed speculators.”  I won’t tell, if you don’t.

First, however, we laugh and scratch about our trading model which – while everyone was puking and worrying End of the World! at mid-week – unerringly stayed long.  My, ain’t a systematic approach great?  At least, until it isn’t.

Coffee and headlines straight away, then!

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