It wasn't supposed to be this way. By now, Peak Oil was supposed to be a fact of daily life. People were supposed to be lined up at gas stations, struggling to buy US$10-a-gallon gas. Solar and wind companies were supposed to occupy prominent places on the Big Board instead of going out of business right and left. People were supposed to have diminished expectations – resigned to shivering in the dark. Free markets, a flawed system of commerce, were to be exposed as a misleading theoretical construct, incapable of providing for people's needs...The world was running out of resources...Now, suddenly, there is a different tale to tell and the New York Times is up to the task. Up and down the Americas, we learn, there is an Oil Boom. Suddenly, we have gone from enforced austerity to an unheralded plenty. Middle East, watch out! [But all is not as it seems. Let me explain.] Words: 1440

An Associated Press release has said that U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has told eurozone finance officials the U.S. is not trying to lecture them on their debt crisis saying that "we still have our challenges in the United States" and that "our politics are terrible... maybe worse than they are in many parts of Europe". The U.S. finance chief said that given the challenges the U.S. faces, "we're not in a particularly strong position to provide advice to all of you." Why isn't this breaking news? Words: 570

Paul Volcker has written an Op-Ed for The New York Times entitled “A Little Inflation Can Be a Dangerous Thing,” in which he argues – and we really won’t dispute it – that allowing inflation above institutionally accepted levels of say, 2 percent, can indeed be a slippery slope, and a very bad thing, but times have changed since Mr. Volcker decided that he would do whatever it took to slay inflation. [These days a little inflation might be a very good thing. Let me explain.] Words: 1636

In the East...gold is not only celebrated, acquired, worn or displayed during holidays or special occasions; it is seen as an everyday symbol of wealth. Increases in demand from China and India have driven a 7.5 percent increase in demand for gold jewelry during the first half of the year despite a 25 percent increase in the price. [Overall,] gold buying in India jumped 38 percent during the second quarter alone...China’s gold purchases jumped 90 percent on a year-over-year basis through June. In addition, demand from central banks is growing dramatically. [Such activity is setting up a] perfect storm - a tidal wave of gold demand [which can only keep prices high and escalating. Let me be more explicit.] Words: 959

In a recent article called There Will Be Oil in the WSJ, Daniel Yergin once again attempts to debunk the concept of peak oil and sees global production capacity growing to 110 mmbpd by 2030, followed by slow decline. In this short report I take a quick look at his key arguments in an effort to bring further convergence between the peak oil and business-as-usual camps. [Unfortunately, I failed to do so concluding that Peak Oil is still very much with us. Let me explain.] Words: 2032

The debt crisis in the United States is unsustainable, and the debt crisis in Europe is unsustainable. As such, we are facing a global debt meltdown and are heading for an economic collapse. You aren't going to hear that truth from the media or from our politicians, however, because keeping people calm is much more of a priority to them than is telling the truth - and right now we are in the calm before the storm. Nobody knows exactly when the storm is going to strike (i.e. when the collapse is going to happen) - but it is definitely on the way -- and now even Goldman Sachs is admitting [that that is most likely the outcome of the present situation. Here is what they had to say recently in a "secret" document that has just now been made public.] Words: 1147

A good way to think about our country's economy is to think of the U.S. like a boxer. We were knocked flat on our back in 2008 and have since struggled to one knee but have never got back to our feet. [As such,] those conversations that imply we might be on the verge of falling down again are rather pointless...With this much slack in the economy, it’s unlikely that any economic downturn from here will be substantial. Does that mean I think the U.S. economy can’t contract from here? No, but I would be very surprised if we were to experience another blow similar to the 2008 recession where real GDP fell 5%. [Let me explain.] Words: 538

If the implications of the current Greek tragedy were not so serious it would have been seen more as a Greek comedy (of fiscal errors). In fact, however, to deploy another metaphor, Greece's sovereign debt is seen as the proverbial canary in the coal mine - a microcosm of the relentlessly growing sovereign debt that has taken much of Europe by storm and is threatening to spread to the U.S.. Words: 1008

I read an article yesterday about the price of physical gold...that I think is worth bringing to your attention [not only because of what was conveyed but who was the source of the comments made and the great credibility of those comments given his] immediate access... to people he knows in high-level positions [and] can, and no doubt does, interact and share views with on a daily basis. [Let me explain more fully.] Words: 840

The Fed justified the last round of quantitative easing "to promote a stronger pace of economic recovery and to help ensure that inflation, over time, is at levels consistent with its mandate". In effect, the Fed is trying to increase inflation, operating at the macro level but what does an increase in inflation mean at the micro level — specifically to your household? [Let's take a look.] Words: 1555