Thursday, October 2, 2008

The Hint of Red October (Musical Tribute)

Didn't I already do a stock market crash tribute this week?

Ambassador Andrei Lysenko: There is another matter... one I'm reluctant to...

Dr. Jeffrey Pelt: Please.

Ambassador Andrei Lysenko: One of our submarines, an Alfa, was last reported in the area of the Grand Banks. We have not heard from her for some time.

Dr. Jeffrey Pelt: Andrei, you've lost another submarine?

Oh well, I'm sure Congress can FIXX it.

Red Ink


Red ink's a fright
Oh no... oh no no no no no no no
Red ink's a fright
Oh no... oh no no no no no no no

Should have taken warning
It's just savers mourning
Bank runs... hiding loss
We can't find... a safe place to go

So it's...

Red ink's a fright
Oh no... oh no no

Should have taken warning
It's just savers mourning
Bank runs... hiding loss
We can't find... a safe place to go

So it's...

Red ink's a fright
Oh no... oh no no no no no no no
Red ink's a fright
Oh no... oh no no

Congress is taking over
And it looks like they're spending
Just for you
Someone said we could be broke by morning
Someone cries, "Oh no!"

Leaving...

Red ink's a fright
Red ink's a fright
Oh no... oh no no no no no no no

Red ink's a fright
Oh no... oh no no no no no no no
Red ink's a fright
Oh no... oh no no no no no no no


I'm glad I kept the electric guitars in reserve. I know what you might be thinking. I must be completely out of ammunition now. No worries. I've got electric tubas lined up in case there's a Red Storm Rising tomorrow. I'm trying to stay ahead of this credit crisis as best I can. It isn't easy though. Nobody really knows what might be coming out of the prosperity spigot next.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Stag,

I'm not a monetary expert, but this dude sees stagflation also.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/10/2/181317/986/216/618130

Who is to say the money won't flow into commodities and CPI goods. That seems to be where the last bubble was inflating.

Stagflationary Mark said...

MAB,

Who is to say the money won't flow into commodities and CPI goods. That seems to be where the last bubble was inflating.

The bubble has already formed at least twice. Based on my long-term economic stagnation theory, I certainly wouldn't rule out more attempts.

Commodities went parabolic into 2006. Then they crashed.

Commodities went even more parabolic from 2007 to mid-2008. Then they crashed.

Based on the trend, there better not be another Age of [Commodity] Turbulence. The storms seem to get bigger each time.

Something is different this time though, but perhaps much like the recession of 1974 was different. According to my calendar math, 1974 did not mark the end of the 1970s though.

That being said, gold bugs and those who feel that gold is money and isn't a commodity are running into a bit of a problem right now in my opinion. Platinum is down to $965 an ounce (from nearly $2300 in March, 2008) and is much rarer than gold. If I was going to buy a long-term store of "value" in the form of a rock under the assumption that the global economy will someday recover with or without us, I'd probably be picking platinum instead. Then there's all the other metals crashing too, like copper and aluminum to name but two.

It also doesn't help gold's case that the TV is filled with ads on how to buy and sell it.

Big selloff in gold today. I guess the deflationists who also really like gold have some explaining to do. It apparently was not the perfect hedge against a falling stock market and/or credit crisis.

I guess that's another reason I prefer to be a paper stagflationist these days. TIPS work best during stagflation but they don't crash like hard assets do should deflation rear its ugly head.

Stagflationary Mark said...

MAB,

One more thought. I just said...

If I was going to buy a long-term store of "value" in the form of a rock under the assumption that the global economy will someday recover with or without us, I'd probably be picking platinum instead.

I should probably finish the thought. If I was working under the assumption that the global economy would NOT recover, I'd probably be doing what Mad Max was doing. I'm fairly confident that gold was low on his list of things to hoard.

Canned goods and toilet paper look pretty good under either scenario though.

Anonymous said...

Stag,

Platinum is down to $965 an ounce (from nearly $2300 in March, 2008)

Commodities are subject to the same bubble/rising price mentality as stocks or Tickle-Me-Elmos. When they are going up in price, people can't get enough of them. When they go down in price, people become fair weather fans.

Look at tickers POT & MOS. People never learn.

I think we'll see an increase in money printing by the fed. But I don't see hyperinflation. Anything is possible though.

So far, I've only bought precious metals as gifts. In this way, I kill two birds with one stone.

In any event, your stockpiling strategy seems sound. You are buying things you can afford and will need. If nothing else, it's reasonably priced insurance.

Stagflationary Mark said...

MAB,

Platinum's down to $958 today. I feel for those who were late to the commodity party and bought it as an economic meltdown hedge. Going from ~$2300 to $958 is not safety. That's the meltdown epicenter.

Perhaps gold is a sentient being. It does seem to be desperately attempting to get out of platinum's way. Gold too is dropping yet again today.

I guess that means I'm not a gold bug. I don't think gold is money, at least not yet. I "still" cannot use a gold bar to buy a candy bar nor can I use it to pay off a credit card debt. I'd therefore still rather have a hoard of candy bars. Maybe that's just me and several hundred million other people though.

Okay, perhaps I've left out an important candy bar detail. Halloween is approaching and my comments should therefore be seasonally adjusted. I expect hoards of trick or treaters this year to deplete much of my candy bar hoard. Believe it or not, several hundred usually show up at my house.

Gold might appease the border guard if one needs to flee the country, but several hundred trick or treaters is a mob and that requires a suitable candy bar defense!

*snickers* ;)

Anonymous said...

Stag,

It's crazy I'm thinking
Just knowing that the world is round
Here I'm dancing on the ground
Am I right side up or upside down
Is this real or am I dreaming
- Dave Mathews Band, Crush.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywNbf0AXL6Y

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_world_is_flat

From where I stand, the world is neither flat nor round. I can say without equivocation that I do like the Dave Mathews Band jam though.

Stagflationary Mark said...

MAB,

I'll see you a "Crush" and raise you two more crushes.

Crushcrushcrush by Paramore or a desperate investment banking plea to Ben Bernanke? You make the call!

Nothing compares to a quiet evening alone
Just the one two of us who's counting on
That never happens
I guess I'm dreaming again
Let's be more than this

If you want to play it like a game
Well, come on, come on, let's play
Cause I'd rather waste my life pretending
Than have to forget you for one whole minute

They taped over your mouth
Scribbled out the truth with their lies
You little lies
They taped over your mouth
Scribbled out the truth with their lies
You little lies