MonkeyBusinessBlog

Let us Give Thanks

2009-11-10T12:10:01-05:00

Well I'm off again to do another economy check. Heading down to Walt Disney World in Orlando with the family to eat some of those turkey legs they have in the Flintstones cartoons. I'm also going to be checking the real estate market to look for some bargains. I'll be there until Sunday so you might not hear from me much until then. Ok, you can stop your cheering. We'll get a few things posted. There might even be a radio call in by me on Sirius/XM on Thursday afternoon. So stay tuned for details.

As far as the markets go, I've got my wagers on and I'm sticking with them. Short: GE, GS. Long: SKF (which is really a double short!!) Its gonna come my way soon. Please be patient.

Finally, tomorrow is Veteran's Day and from all of us here at monkeybusinessblog.com we give our heartfelt thanks to the men and women who protect our freedom in the armed forces. From the Revolutionary War to the present day, you'd be hard pressed to find a better country in the history of the world than this one. They are a large part of the reasons why. Please also keep in mind that there are not just the "old-timers" that are veterans either. Some very young people who have fought in current conflicts are also veterans now. They deserve the same respect. So if you see a veteran, buy he or she a drink, pat 'em on the back, or do whatever you want to express your thanks. They've all done a lot for you and me. God bless them and everyone who protects the United States of America.

Now I'm off to the "land of the magical rat".

Eich Bin Ein Berliner

2009-11-09T16:13:58-05:00

Congratulations Germany--and really all of us--on the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. Saw a lot of German faces with smiles on today and a lot with tears of joy including the leader Ms. Merkel. Our President? I guess he was too busy to go. Working on a healthcare bill I gather that is still about 6 months away. Oh does anyone want to take the under on that number? I'll be glad to wager with you. Oh and we can even do another bet that the Germans are a little confused why Hilary Clinton is celebrating their 20th anniversary of freedom and not our President. The bet would be something like: "the next time President Obama of the United States comes to speak in Germany the crowd is less than 200,000 like the last time." What do you think his idol JFK would've done today?

Well MAYBE the President is working hard on talking with the CIA guys, who apparently knew about this terrorist months ago, that killed and maimed scores of people at Fort Hood,. And thats what that filthy animal is, a terrorist. We aren't going to rush to judgement though as the President says. Until we get all the facts. Well my guess is the President's advisors are telling him NOT to say stuff like he did to the NY Times on March 16, 2007. The Honorable Senator from Illinois said to Times reporter, Nicholos Kristof, "One of the prettiest sounds on earth at sunset is the Muslim call to prayer." Now seriously, who says this kind of stuff? Muslims probably do. But it got better when Kristof reported, "then Obama recited in a first class Arabic accent the opening lines of the Muslim call to prayer." Now some of you may be angry when I bring these facts up, but I'll make another bet: the Times ain't reprinting that article anytime soon. Maybe the NY Post will or Fox News but not the Times. I'm thinking the Commander in Chief might want to listen to the guys in the field if they say there are more Muslim terrorists in our Armed Forces and, if so, its time for some good old fashion racial profiling. Its getting a little late in the game. Do I have to tell you what happens to the economy if another "US soldier" blows himself up on a bus in Times Square, NYC right before Thanksgiving? Let me get off the soapbox though and state some more facts from our German friends.

Kevin Hassett, from bloomberg.com, has written "U.S. Should Try Germany's Unemployment Medicine". Now remember we reported on these pages that the GERMANS, not the US, came up with the "Cash for Clunkers" program earlier in the year. But they bagged it (technical term) when they realized there was all kinds of fraud associated with it and it COST them money. But did we listen and learn? No. We listened to the beginning part and, well, you see what has happened. However, there's a new program that makes so much sense that I'm SURE we won't try this. Mr Hassett reports that its called, "Kurzarbeit" (was that a sneeze?).

Mr. Hassett goes on to say it kind of translates into "short work" and firms that are in trouble in Germany, and might have to cut employees, just cuts back hours for the workers rather than have mass layoffs. If the hours and wages are reduced by 10 percent or more, the government pays the workers 60% of their lost salary. As I contimued to read, I was kicking myself for not coming up with this idea myself. Everybody keeps working but just less until things get better. They are also given a little somethin somethin (technical term) for their time off the job. Then I thought, how about our economists working for the administration? Why didn't THEY come up with this?

See the basis is, if a firm fires people it costs them dough, it costs the government dough, and the social ills are huge. Not to mention when the economy eventually comes back, the firm has to rehire workers, probably train them, and most likely miss out on a lot of profits. This way seems to prevent that issue. But in this country, no company thinks of that because there's no incentive to do it.

Hassett says it would probably cost the country $10.6bn to implement it and compared to $787bn its gotta be worth a try right? He says its not too late but we are running out of time. Kind of like my example above with the filthy animal that we are paying for to live with doctors watching him around the clock for murdering Americans because they were......Americans. I think we give this Kurzarbeit "short work" a try. Oh the unemployment rate in Germany? Dropping. The U.S.? Not so much. We gotta wake up.

Stocks are Up, So Let's Recommend One!

2009-11-09T14:44:59-05:00

Well the market is roaring again. The Dow is up a fat 150 today. Thats another 1.5% for you scoring at home. 16% on the year. The S+P 500 is even better. Up 20% year to date! So I have to recommend a stock to buy, dont I? I mean I shorted Goldman Sachs and General Electric the other day. I must have something I like right? Or am I just some foolish delusional assclown selling stocks in a beautiful economy?

I actually do have a stock I like finally today. I've been waiting to buy this one since I sold it in July at 38.5. Now the stock has good potential for growth and Eric pointed out to me that it has provided real solid returns in the past. Of course, my charts have also given the "Buy" signal. So lets do this thing. Oh the stock? Well its an Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) that represents 2x the opposite of the Dow Jones U.S, Financials Index. The ticker is SKF!

Come on. You didnt think I was really buying a stock in this fake rally did you? Hell no. This SKF is a double down bet that the banks are going into the crapper......again!! I invite all the naysayers and the disbelievers to comment. I also am aware that the SKF isn't necessarily the best vehicle to do this if you have a long term view but I don't care. I think this is a good product for a nice short term trade and I'm playing. The banks haven't begun to take their licks in their Commercial Mortgage Backed Portfolios and there is some OBSCENE amount of loans that are going to need to be refinanced in 2010-2012. Guess what? They aint gettin refinanced. Nobody but the governments have any money to put to use. And that money is borrowed money. No likey. Buy SKF and watch it go up, up, up as many banks go, as Mike Tyson once said, "into Bolivia."

I See Others are Coming to My "Buffett" Party

2009-11-09T10:45:51-05:00

A little tired this morning. Played "entertainment guy" for about 20 kids at my kid's 6th birthday party. The "egg relay race", "Freeze dancing", "Pin the tail on the donkey", "simon sez", all came out of the woodwork. Now this wasn't a scheduled task for yours truly, the hired help got sick due to illness. Canceled about 1 hour before the party. Fortunately, there was no initial deposit required for said help. Otherwise, I'd probably be in small claims court in the not too distant future. In any event, a good time was had by all and all of the parents seemed to think I had a big future in being a camp counselor. So I got that goin for me. One of the parents made a better point, "Richie maybe you should OWN a camp." Good idea. I will look into it. Seriously.

But I was happy to see that are pal, Terry Keenan, from Fox News and the NY Post, is paying attention. In her nice, concise article in the NY Post Business Section Sunday, "What is Behind Buffett's Burlington Buy?" She points out that maybe the "Oracle" ain't so pro-America like his nifty little comments came out in the media. Maybe he is saying, "um there is going to be RAMPANT inflation, and the dollar is in the terlet, and I want to own HARD assets like a railroad that will benefit if goods bought by foreigners (where their currencies are nice and strong and thus U.S. stuff is cheap) need to be shipped via my new railroad."

Now before you get all indignant on me, think about it. That CAN'T be going through the "Oracle's" mind? No possible way, because he LOVES America? Ok. Sure.

Oh and I am aware the market's are waaaay up again today. Be patient. Anybody want some cold pizza and ice cream cake? I have some left over. Otherwise I'm going to eat it as I watch the stock ticker.

Big Dick Part of the BREED that Succeeds

2009-11-06T14:11:19-05:00

Editor's Note--Well Big D, CLASSY JET didn't win last Friday but she did finish a nice 2nd. Watch out next time. And due to some funny business in the 2nd half of the Jets/Miami game, you had a losing weekend. Lets see you break out and of course give us a few BREEDERS CUP winners!--R.B.

Well Richie we thought we had a lot of things pegged last weekend, but alas it didnt come true. That's ok we're ready for this wonderful sports weekend. For those who may know me for quite some time, you will know that 6 years back when the BREEDERS CUP was held at Santa Anita, I nearly busted an OTB parlor with winners all by myself. No kidding. We look for the same success today and tomorrow. First let's do the NFL, then backtrack to the horse racing.

The ARIZONA CARDINALS are a feisty road underdog. They get 3 points from da Bearssss. Chicago a little shaky on defense. CARDS are a nice choice. The NY Giants and the San Diego Chargers clearly have weaker defenses than they have in years past. Particularly the Giants. Well the 47.5 total looks high but it doesn't scare us. OVER in the Meadowlands. Finally, on Monday Night, the wrong team is favored. Yes DENVER came back to earth last week but Pittsburgh hasn't been exactly bowling them over on the road this year. DENVER fans will be rabid. 3 points is a lot. Take the points and the BRONCOS.

In the BREEDERS CUP, we will give you horses we LOVE to win. No gimmickery or other messing around. So here it goes:

Today 4:40 pm eastern Santa Anita Race 5: #11 ALWAYS A PRINCESS

Race 6: #4 MAGICAL FANTASY

Race 7: #9 VENTURA

Sunday Santa Anita Race 5: #13 LUCKIN FOR LUCKY

Race 9: #6 RICHARD's KID (the upset special of the day!)

To recap: Friday and Saturday's horse selections above and in the NFL: ARIZONA+3 @ Chicago, OVER 47.5 NY Giants/San Diego, and DENVER+3 vs Pittsburgh. Good luck and god bless to all!

Stocks, Bonds, Commodities, Flu Shots?

2009-11-05T13:41:23-05:00

The Today Show is reporting that places like Goldman Sachs (there's that name again!) and Citigroup are getting more H1N1 (swine flu) shots for their employees than some hospitals in NYC! You can't even begin to make this stuff up. The Today Show gets like a bunch of housewives all over the country watching right? Christ, you don't want them pissed off at you. The media really doesn't like these banks does it? I dont either. For perhaps different reasons.

Speaking of Goldman, I shorted their shares at $171.50. Its higher than that now. Which, if you are counting at home, is not a good thing. But as they used to say in the streets, "Ask me DO I care?!?!" I do not. I have made my bed. I now will sleep in it. I actually am kinda glad since my whole "shorting program" isn't done yet and I will have a chance perhaps tomorrow to short some others at higher levels. I say perhaps because there's a "little" number tomorrow at 8:30 a.m. eastern time called "the unemployment report". It has a tendency to make all kinds of markets a bit volatile. I love volatility. Or as some of my gold buying Indian friends say, "wolatility". Enjoy.

Stocks, Bonds, Commodities, Flu Shots?

2009-11-05T13:28:54-05:00

Speaking of Goldman, I shorted their shares at $171.50. It's higher than that now. Which, if you are counting at home, is not a good thing. But as they used to say in the streets, "Ask me DO I care?!?!" I do not. I have made my bed. I now will sleep in it. I actually am kinda glad since my whole "shorting program" isn't done yet and I will have a chance perhaps tomorrow to short some others at higher levels. I say perhaps because there's a "little" number tomorrow at 8:30 a.m. eastern time called "the unemployment report". It has a tendency to make all kinds of markets a bit volatile. I love volatility. Or as some of my gold buying Indian friends say, "wolatility". Enjoy.

R Dizzle Says Peace Out Aiiiiiiiiight?!?

2009-11-04T11:11:27-05:00

I'm walking up 5th Avenue in NYC last evening smoking a cigar, as I have been known to do. People are out but I don't notice many carrying shopping bags. I do notice some foreign voices which is a good sign. I'm hoping that the weak U.S. dollar is going to be good for something. I know the rest of the world has its issues but there have to be some bargains the foreign tourists can spend their hard earned dough on right here in the good ol' US of A.

So, in any event, I see 4 fellows hawking CDs. But not a table of CDs, just a few CDs in their hands. I realize they are also GIVING them away and just asking for "donations". I think to myself man the recording industry must be pretty banged up. And here is the conversation that ensued:

Rap Star: Yo! Yo! Sir! Dont be afraid to talk to the black man!

Richie B (smiling): What are you sellin?

RS: Nah man I want you to HAVE this CD. I'm a rapstar AND a comedian.

RB: Hmmm. Timboking presents Artillery. Portraits and Masterpieces. Is this like a greatest hits CD?

RS: Yeah man. Where you from?

RB: New York City.

RS: Can you spare a donation brothah? (Smiling as Richie slips him a 5 spot) Yo, my man be careful at the strip clubs tonight. Wear 2 condoms, not just one. You dont want to get the NEW YORK MONSTAH! (pointing to his crotch).

RB: You ARE a comedian. Now when you become big and famous will you forget me?

RS: Whats yaw name?

RB: Richie

RS: (as he autographs the CD). Yaw rap name is "R Dizzle". "To R Dizzle. Work it Mother%(*%^&*(&#&."

So I got that goin for me. Didn't listen to the CD yet but I might tonight. I see the stock market is up nicely as it looks like the Fed will not be changing their stance on keeping rates low for now. Which is nice. That makes me so happy you can SELL 2 stocks today. The General Electric Company (ticker: GE) and The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (ticker: GS). Yep. I said it. I meant it. I even represent it. (Must be the rap juices flowing). So go ahead take the plunge and short GE, who has too many toxic assets and no one has been able to tell me what their finance company is and GS, who is still printing money but has more than doubled this year. We smell it coming back to earth.

And that's just the beginning of the sales. Tomorrow we might have even more. Listen to your boy R Dizzle. Sell GE and GS.