USA & World Economics

[QUOTE=RevBS;444691][URL]http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/04/17/a-hungry-gwyneth-paltrow-fails-the-food-stamp-challenge-four-days-in/?tid=pm_pop[/URL]

Living on food stamps, $29 per day. Well, I do not know the restrictions of food stamps, so my comments are somewhat skewed. But I believe I can live more than well on $29 per person per day. Honestly, you only need 1 solid meal per day. But the general population shop according to their addictions.[/QUOTE]$29 is the average for a week, not a day. Living "more than well" on $4/day is a bit more challenging.

[QUOTE=EasyGo;444711]$29 is the average for a week, not a day. Living "more than well" on $4/day is a bit more challenging.[/QUOTE]Definitely, $29 per week will be impossible for the 99%. The 1% might make ii but not well for sure.

The next time I splurge $20 on a meal, I am going to spank myself.

I knew this couldn't be good.

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece ordered its public sector operations on Monday to transfer idle cash to the central bank in a scramble to meets its needs in the run-up to IMF loan repayments next month.

Greece has been tapping into the cash reserves of pension funds and other public money in temporary transactions.

The latest demand shows how extreme the financial constraints on Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras have become as he tries to convince foreign creditors to extend new financial aid.

Damn you Krugman. I thought you said debt didn't matter?

[QUOTE=BadMan;444697]Greece is about to be proper fcuked.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=BadMan;444733]I knew this couldn't be good.

Damn you Krugman. I thought you said debt didn't matter?[/QUOTE]Wasn't capital structure irrelevance Modigliani and Miller's theory? Of course, they made a bunch of simplifying assumptions to make the math easy. And they were referring to the private firm.

Is there a similar theorem for public finance?

Krugman does argue that austerity does not work. The Greek lenders want austerity to be the official policy in Greece. The Greeks are fighting against it.

[URL]http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general/536583/thailand-drops-in-global-tourism-rankings[/URL]

Thailand, highly dependent on tourism saw it's tourism destination ranking dipped in 2014. It was expected as the country had negative vibes during the political upheavals in Bangkok for much of the year. Europe and the US continued to be the top popular destinations.

So where will you go in 2015? You would think that AP would have stimulating discussion concerning travel but it seems nobody travels, or maybe, they are just shy.

[QUOTE=RevBS;444742][URL]http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general/536583/thailand-drops-in-global-tourism-rankings[/URL]

Thailand, highly dependent on tourism saw it's tourism destination ranking dipped in 2014. It was expected as the country had negative vibes during the political upheavals in Bangkok for much of the year. Europe and the US continued to be the top popular destinations.

So where will you go in 2015? You would think that AP would have stimulating discussion concerning travel but it seems nobody travels, or maybe, they are just shy.[/QUOTE]Looking over the AP board for the last month, I am beginning to wonder why the fuck any monger would travel to BA? Stinken politics, dumb guys bidding up the price for pussy, clubs disappearing, chica attitude, exchange rate declining, etc. Sounds like the perfect place not to go. Are things going to get worse?

[QUOTE=BobbyDoerr;444752]Looking over the AP board for the last month, I am beginning to wonder why the fuck any monger would travel to BA? Stinken politics, dumb guys bidding up the price for pussy, clubs disappearing, chica attitude, exchange rate declining, etc. Sounds like the perfect place not to go. Are things going to get worse?[/QUOTE]I've been saying it for over a year, BsAs isn't the short time destination it used to be. If you want to travel somewhere for a week to ten days and fuck a lot then Germany with the FKK's is the place to go, not here.

If you live here and can say, fuck off, to a lot of chicks and can wait until you find the ones that aren't infected with GPS, then it's great.

Maybe once Argentina's economy is worse than the US but clearly better than Paraguay and Brazil for a year or so and the blue rate jumps a bit maybe then, but for now it's really not that great for a short vacation. You can get laid cheaper in the states.

[QUOTE=BobbyDoerr;444752]Looking over the AP board for the last month, I am beginning to wonder why the fuck any monger would travel to BA? Stinken politics, dumb guys bidding up the price for pussy, clubs disappearing, chica attitude, exchange rate declining, etc. Sounds like the perfect place not to go. Are things going to get worse?[/QUOTE][URL]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mU9d4ukTNRY[/URL]

Just try to stay away.

[QUOTE=BobbyDoerr;444752]Looking over the AP board for the last month, I am beginning to wonder why the fuck any monger would travel to BA? Stinken politics, dumb guys bidding up the price for pussy, clubs disappearing, chica attitude, exchange rate declining, etc. Sounds like the perfect place not to go. Are things going to get worse?[/QUOTE]BA used to be a monger's paradise as well as a place to drop some serious money in the clubs. I do not care what country you go to, there will always be dumb and/or drunk guys bidding up the price of pussy. Unfortunately, Argentine girls try to get the high price of their last fuck, and do not understand that everyone is not dumb and/or drunk. A lot of that has changed in the last year, and the good looking, easy pussy is probably a thing of the past--at least for the short term visitor who does not speak any Spanish. HOWEVER, it is still an inexpensive place to fuck good looking, young, cheap pussy. You just have to work harder for it. The food is good, if you like steak, and the politics do not really bother someone from another country. In fact, we gringos continue to marvel that the country still functions, but we do not think like Argentines either. The bottom line is that as long as Argentine men like to fuck, and as long as a hooker can make decent money selling her pussy, Argentina will be a good place to go. I gave up on the night club scene long ago, but my pussy budget (in dollars) has not changed since 2002 (I do not live here), and I get all the pussy I want. Safety is also relative. In any big foreign city, an American usually sticks out like a sore thumb. If you do not keep your wits about you, you are just asking to become another victim. That is not restricted to Argentina. It is the same the world over.

Tres3.

Bill Gates has a message for the world.

[URL]http://www.gatesnotes.com/Books/Should-We-Eat-Meat?WT.mc_id=04_21_2015_VaclavMeat_OB&WT.tsrc=Outbrain[/URL]

There has been some occasional discussion of stocks before in this thread, I'm surprised there isn't more. I'll throw out another one for fun.

Some of you were discussing LINE. Just checked the chart and man did it get pummeled. Looks like it is recovering but I'm staying away as I just don't understand the company or industry well. Too much uncertainty in the oil & gas sector, especially with debt and debt covenants etc. LINE reports tomorrow and the analysts are really keeping the estimates low at -0.201 average consensus, which would be the poorest quarter in years. Who knows. Another interesting one is Ecopetrol (EC), which also got crushed but financials look better than LINE (Net Income Avail to Common and Leveraged Free Cash Flow are positive, unlike LINE). One company in this sector I did feel comfortable enough to buy was CLB, got in below 100 which was ridiculous and cashed out nicely, though still too early.

One company I've been following recently is Fossil (FOSL). Was already in and out in the low 80's at a small profit. Now back in again at average ~ 82. It got whacked in February by missing estimates and lowering guidance, but like above the analysts are really lowballing the next quarter. However unlike Oil & Gas, consumer spending data is more visible and holding up well. I own a few hundred and will hold most through earnings on 5/5.

EPS
2012 Q1 0.93
2013 Q1 1.21
2014 Q1 1.22
2015 Q1 0.63 Average estimate seems low given consumer spending data, though could be factoring in FX and restructuring charges.

[QUOTE=Esten;444825]There has been some occasional discussion of stocks before in this thread, I'm surprised there isn't more. I'll throw out another one for fun.

Some of you were discussing LINE. Just checked the chart and man did it get pummeled. Looks like it is recovering but I'm staying away as I just don't understand the company or industry well. Too much uncertainty in the oil & gas sector, especially with debt and debt covenants etc. LINE reports tomorrow and the analysts are really keeping the estimates low at -0.201 average consensus, which would be the poorest quarter in years. Who knows. Another interesting one is Ecopetrol (EC), which also got crushed but financials look better than LINE (Net Income Avail to Common and Leveraged Free Cash Flow are positive, unlike LINE). One company in this sector I did feel comfortable enough to buy was CLB, got in below 100 which was ridiculous and cashed out nicely, though still too earl.

[/QUOTE]That's the trouble with discussing stocks in blogs. I have no obligation to tell you what I am doing. I sold my LINE no where near the top but it was still a good investment for me. ROI way over the rate of return I target which is 3% real rate of return. Of course, the difference between the top and where I sold it was probably a fun trip where to BA where I did not paying night club prices and further driving Daddy Rulz crazy. Easy come easy go. I don't remember anybody that I read last summer that had oil prices at the current $58 a barrel. If you had it, congratulations.

One that I recommended last June after my May trip as a play on Argentina was Industrial & Commercial Bank of China. IDBCY. I think they bought all the HSBC branches. China of course wants Argentina's natural resources. Also I live in Los Angeles where I have seen first hand what Chinese money can do to an economy. I was trying to draw an analogy between LA and BA. I have a nice 35% 1-year gain in this one. I was just in Hong Kong and Bangkok and IDBCY has a big presence in both those places. However I am thinking of taking things off the table here. My girlfriend was in Shanghai where all her friends were buying stocks. That's probably the biggest factor behind IDBCY. I always say if you are at the car wash waiting for your car to be detailed and people are talking investments it is time to sell. It is probably true of Argentina Private blogs also.

[QUOTE=BigBossMan;444844]That's the trouble with discussing stocks in blogs. I have no obligation to tell you what I am doing. I sold my LINE no where near the top but it was still a good investment for me. ROI way over the rate of return I target which is 3% real rate of return. Of course, the difference between the top and where I sold it was probably a fun trip where to BA where I did not paying night club prices and further driving Daddy Rulz crazy. Easy come easy go. I don't remember anybody that I read last summer that had oil prices at the current $58 a barrel. If you had it, congratulations.[/QUOTE]Last time I mentioned a stock was back in 2013. I was out of the market most of 2014 as I had other financial plans. Got back in January 2015 with modest goals and am doing well. 16 closed trades YTD, 15 profitable. Average gain per trade 10%, total net gain 50%. Since losing my ass several years ago I changed my perspective and approach. No, I did not see where oil was headed. Glad to hear you sold LINE before the carnage. Looks like you did nicely on IDCBY too.

I have a different perspective BBM. I am interested in what the readers here have to say about the market, and in fact think the information here is likely to be of decent quality, since AP is not by any means an obvious place to shill about stocks. Just because somebody here mentioned a stock doesn't mean it's time to sell. There is much to be said for the contrarian view, but as with politics, critical thinking is always a must.

Anways do not take anything I say as "advice" ! I just tossed a name (and some analysis) out there for fun. Would be fun to have a little stock picking contest....

[URL]http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/science/2015/05/pope_francis_ban_ki_moon_climate_change_talks_renewed_faith_from_vatican.html[/URL]

As you walk around the city & your own neighborhood, you are sometimes disgusted by the actions of your neighbors and fellow.

Citizens. There are trash & dog shit left by callous & selfish people. What to do. But maybe first, how about ourselves?

That was from the link in the previous post. And now on to Milan Expo 2015 which opened on May 1. "Feeding the planet.

Energy for life". A global dialogue for hunger, obesity, and food security. A commitment to not wasting food & water, and.

To play an active role in building a sustainable world.

Too much activitism for you? Well, maybe, just an good excuse to visit Milan, as well as the lake & wine scene.

[URL]http://www.economist.com/news/europe/21650446-italys-global-exposition-reflects-cautious-optimism-countrys-turnaround-fair-performance[/URL]