Idling and parking (updated)

8:26 am (Hawaii) Some long, fun days for me with summer here, which means I've slept through the past two sessions for the most part. Even though I knew futures were up more than 100 points last night. The Dow is +203 with about 90 minutes left. AAPL is hovering around 570, off its intraday high of 573.85. AGQ is up 5.1% to 43.86, one of the most obvious signs that sentiment is with the bulls, i.e. euro printing is about to crank into full madness.

DGP is barely green today, however. Also note that volume is a pittance, so this move could pop any moment. It's a three-legged chair. It's a lack of sellers more than an onslaught of buyers. Even social media are up: FB +0.9%, YELP +4.3%. Even GRPN +7.4%.

Finnies are rallying again. JPM is +2.6% and FAS is +6.66 percent (not making that up). VXX is down 4.8% and TVIX is -8.9%.

I have some work to do, in and out this morning (yes, it's still morning here in the middle of the Pacific), and I'm not convinced about this move higher. I may dip into DGP or even NUGT with a tight stop, but that's it. This arena is half empty, and if the balloon pops in Europe, the tankage will resume. My gut tells me they have to print, though. It's a conundrum.

Update 10:04 am In and out of FAS for a quick little profit. Got in at 77.70 a few minutes before the closing bell. Swung lower to about 77.45 before it closed strong. A few minutes after the bell, sold at 78.45. They'll puppeteer this thing back to 77.70 or so at some point today, I'm guessing.

Of course, now that I'm out, it will go to 80, then 85, then 90. They must print euros. Simple as that. So why am I not in gold and/or silver? Both have made big runs recently. I'll wait until things cool off a little more before walking into that. Because any whiff of bad news regarding the ECB, eurozone, Germany ... and FAS goes back to 68. And lower.

Weekend cinema & library (updated)

Bokor Mountain Church, Cambodia

Le Fly/iBankCoin: Germany's third World War (June 3)
Scott Bleier/iBankCoin: Growth at any cost? (June 3)
Business Insider: Soros reveals exact moment Merkel started Euro collapse (June 2)
Business Insider: Former hedge funder presents terrifying version of end game (June 2)
Bloomberg: Merkel rejects debt sharing (June 2)
Reuters: Funds pull out of commodities, most bearish since end-2011 (June 1)
Zero Hedge: 'The End Game' (June 1)
Zero Hedge: The deer is back (June 1)
Zero Hedge: Santelli and Kaminsky on broken rules, unpredictability, deleveraging (June 1)
Zero Hedge: Sorry folks, QE3 ain't coming, even the Fed doves admit it (June 1)

Weekend library & cinema (updated)

G8 gathers at Camp David this weekend

Boston Globe: An exit by Greece would test the eurozone (May 21)

Business Day: Roubini - Damage from Greek euro exit can be contained (May 21)

Reuters: World leaders back Greece, vow to combat financial turmoil (May 19)

Telegraph: Global banks see market rally on Greek exit (May 18)

"We think the worst is over for the euro," said David Bloom, currency chief at HSBC. "The central banks will have to step in massively and that will be a soothing balm for the markets. The Fed is already leaving the door open for more QE. We could see quite a powerful rally."

Financial Times: Spain hit by rise in bad bank loans (May 18)
ABC News (Australia): Greece tops G8 agenda as markets tumble (May 18)

The World: Moody's downgrades Spanish banks (May 18)

Library of Barcelona

Mercurial Monday? (updated)

2:27 am (Hawaii) Asia wasn't so hot. Then Europe opened and the radical elections in France took effect. As a result, the Euro sank, as did finnies there, and FAZ got up to 23.42 in pre-premarket trading. In regular-people trading, which started 27 minutes ago, FAZ was up to 23.00. it closed at 22.48 on Friday (and I took a pass imagining that the EU would start babbling about another stimulus or some other shady hero action).

Fib retrace would put FAZ at 22.80, which is close to its current price (22.89). No rush to get in here.

Update 3:41 am Out of ZAGG at 11.50, a loss of 0.56 per share. Not a tiny loss, not a huge loss. But it was pointless not because the company doesn't have a huge revenue base in the future, but because there is so much negativity surrounding it. One essay/analysis after another from amateurs and academics alike saying the financial numbers don't add up, the company is not being forthright, blah blah blah.

At a certain point, I surrender rather than be stubborn. It's not about my ego. It's about price action, and 3% down is more than enough to walk away.

Meanwhile, AAPL is up 1.2% to 572. The Nas and S&P are green, Dow is down 30 points. Europe has not altered the US market after all. ZAGG is doing an awful tumble down the hill on its own just fine, now at 10.98. The shorts own this completely, as they showed last week.

Dabbling and babbling

Took a ride on FAZ Wednesday, jumping in at 21.75, only to be stopped out at 21.65. Why use stops? If you're asking that question, you may not realize how dangerous FAZ (and FAS) can be. These 3x poltergeist monsters can make or break an account in minutes, even seconds. (There was a day years ago when I made 4k and lost 4k in premarket on FAS. That's what a quick trip to the toilet cost me on that wild morning, but it was a lesson well learned.)

Got back in today at 22.29 and placed a stop at 21.89 before I left home for a journey. FAZ eventually dropped to 21.95 before closing at 22.06, so my position is still in play. I don't feel any certainty about this trade. LaGarde is begging for more invisible fiat currency to be printed, and it could happen overnight. Or it could drag out through the France presidential elections later this month and in May. Bernanke has already said, at least for show, that the US will not save the Euro. I don't believe him, but that's what's on the table for now.

The low volume in Wednesday's rally was a convincing factor for me. And financials are not rallying even as they "beat" earnings estimates. Everything's baked in, and the retail trader has no interest in buying anything that's bloated or overbought, even at low 14x earnings levels (AAPL).

But when AAPL gets to my target of 546 (Fibonacci retrace from the 396 level late last year), I'll be itching to get in. While the rest of the planet earth crumbles, every last consumer will trade in whatever he or she can just to have an iPad and/or iPhone 5. By then, I'll be out of FAZ, long before (hopefully) the US and Europe are printing cyberbucks for nothing.

Thursday cinema & library (updated 1000 pm HST)

Orpheum Theater, Memphis, Tennessee

Blogs
Golden Truth: Legalized fraud (Oct 13)

Dan Norcini: Gold still being held by $1680 (Oct 13)

Le Fly: Flirting with disaster (Oct 13)

SGS: Trade on, trade off (Oct 13)

Zero Hedge: Foreigners dump $74 billion in Treasurys in 6 consecutive weeks (Oct 13)
Le Fly: Coming soon: Horrific destruction (Oct 13)

Zero Hedge: 'Book-cooking' index soards to all-time highs (Oct 13)

Zero Hedge: So much for EURUSD breaking 1.38: S&P cuts Spain to AA- from AA (Oct 13)
Rajun Cajun: Winner winner chicken dinner (Oct 13)

Zero Hedge: Fitch downgrades UBS, puts MS, BAC, GS on watch negative (Oct 13)
Zero Hedge: Google surges afterhours on big top and bottom line beat (Oct 13)

Le Fly: Tired bull (Oct 13)

Turd Ferguson: Deflating inflation (Oct 13)

Zero Hedge: David Rosenberg: Action is always at margin... and margin is not pretty (Oct 13)

Zero Hedge: Work in banking? Find out if you will be laid off (Oct 13)

Zero Hedge: Van Rompuy, Barroso announce 440-billion Euro EFSF fully functional (Oct 13)

James Altucher: 7 things happen to you when you are completely honest (Oct 12)

Golden Truth: So far 'Operation Twist' is colossal failure (Oct 12)

Doug Kass: 10 questions for the bears (Oct 10)
Doug Kass: 10 questions for the bulls (Oct 10)
James Altucher: I lost $5 million this morning (Sept 24)

Vlogs
(new) Young Turks: CNN's Burnett: Root for the banks! (Oct 13)

Keiser Report: Dog & Pony Show (Oct 13)

StormCloudsGathering: The chain of obedience (Oct 13)

Standard Rebellion: How many more occupations? (Oct 13)

Luke Rudkowski: Michael Moore, Take 2 (Oct 13)

theeastwatch: N. Korea too?!? WTF (Oct 13)

Realist News: Why NOT to play the paper silver SLV or gold GLD game (Oct 13)

GuildF40: Slovakia agrees to expand European bailout fund (Oct 13)

Realist News: JPMorgan's fraud accounting practices produces great 3rd quarter (Oct 13)

Realist News: Is Mexico's 92 tons of gold gone? (Oct 13)

SilverGuild: Gold as money across the US (Oct 13)

ScrapGoldBusiness: Silver shortage - Perth Mint out of silver? (Oct 13)

Alexiscom1: No gold in Fort Knox, CFTC limits, Alessio Rastani on GS (Oct 13)

Chris Duane (Silver Shield): The ultimate exit strategy (Oct 12)

Jim Comiskey: Daily market insights - metals futures (Oct 12)

NewAmericaNow: I am not moving (Oct 10)

Audio

Peter Schiff: Guest Andrew Napolitano (Oct 13)

Chris Martenson: Guest Rob Hopkins (Oct 13)

ScrapGoldBusiness: This was someone's home (Oct 13)

Mike Broomhead: Guest Gerald Celente (Oct 10)

Mainstream

CNBC: European stocks to open flat, Spain rating cut (Oct 14)

Financial Times: ECB did all it could to stem crisis: Trichet (Oct 14)

Bloomberg: Hairy crab as sign of China food inflation (Oct 14)

(video) (new) Sky News: Nigel Farage and Sharon Bowles (Oct 13)

(video) (new) RT: Nigel Farage on European bailouts (Oct 13)

(video) (new) Euronews: Greek general strike to be extended (Oct 13)

(new) Bloomberg: Spain credit rating cut by S&P on weak outlook (Oct 13)
(new) Bloomberg: Greek investors brace for bigger loss to stop rot (Oct 13)
(new) Bloomberg: Buffett's son defends Occupy Wall St protests (Oct 13)

Keith Olbermann: Americans support of Occupy Wall St movement growing (Oct 13)

Reuters: Gold flat, Spain downgrade may weigh (Oct 13)

CNBC: Euro zone crisis set to dominate G20 meeting in Paris (Oct 13)

CNBC: JPMorgan investment bank avoids crisis, for now (Oct 13)

Reuters: JPMorgan quarterly profit falls, will cut 1,000 jobs (Oct 13)

Reuters: 'Lehman moment' could be trigger for US economic renewal (Oct 13)

Bloomberg: Google results, business outlook, Apple, Zynga (Oct 13)

CNBC: How Finland could bring Euro's demise (Oct 13)

(video) (new) UKIP Media: Nigel Farage: Slovak vote no to bailout (Oct 12)

BNN: Apple co-founder buys gold (Oct 12)

Live
(new) Bloomberg TV

Duh-duh-duh-dollar?

12:54 am (Hawaii) Clive Maund sees silver on the verge of a plunge, though he offers nothing beyond technicals. Good enough for him, not for me. I'm not touching paper silver here, but I am watching for a dip. But Maund has already echoed what a lot of people expected with a decline in the Euro: a rise in the US Dollar. If that means, as he predicts, a rise in Treasuries, that fits the recipe, doesn't it? After all, Obama is long Treasuries.

Might take a closer look at UUP (long dollar ETF) this week for a brief, quick trade, though I still lean toward FAZ long term. No positions, all cash, but watching.

What's 3 hours?

7:47 am (Hawaii) I was up from my slumber at 4:30 am, an hour into the session. But I quickly recoiled from this conscious world back into sweet sleep for another 3 hours. What do I find? The market down 250 points (Dow), then within a few minutes, down 300 points. Yet, gold and silver are down, too. Strange. That leads me to believe FAZ has to be doing well. Sure enough, it's at 62+, well above yesterday's closing price (58+).

In the past week, FAZ has gone from 50 to 67 to 55 and now to 62. Amazing. Not surprising. Just incredible. There's no doubt it will go to 100, though the whole rubber-band effect of political trickeration is far from over, and FAZ could easily see 50 again before the run to the century mark. Today, 1) the head of the ECU resigned, and 2) Greece may default over the weekend. Why this is shocking the market, I don't know. Every nation that is dependent on crack dealers (banksters) will become crackheads sooner or later. Then they own you. And the grimy puppeteers are playing every nation on earth, using paper (digital) money to shoot bullets into any remaining strength.

I've been in 100% cash for practically the past two weeks. It was tempting this week to scale into DGP and FAZ, but I opted not to. The US dollar is hot, now above 77 with all this Euro crisis craziness. Eventually, though, gold will rally on this as the heat of today's news cools off. I might scale in a little bit on DGP if it can get back to 67 or 65. FAZ was and still is good to scale in at 55 or 50, but I didn't pull the trigger. I am glad that I'm not long this effed-up market trying to beat machines from another solar system, or trusting any of these monetary system decision makers who refuse to admit that Keynes is wrong. Ultimately wrong.

Bloomberg: US stocks tumble on speculation Greece may default (Sept 9)

Bloomberg: Treasury 10-year yield falls to record on Greece default concern (Sept 9)

Business Insider: Here's why everyone's thinking Greece might default (Sept 9)

Le Fly: AUDIBLE: Preparing for a crash (Sept 9)

CNBC: What happens if Greece defaults (June 16)

> Slideshow

Tuesday cinema & library (updated 200 am HST)

Utrecht Astronomy Library

11:14 am (Hawaii) What a wacky few hours. I saw the Dow Jones go from -200 to -140 or so, back to -200, then to -100. Whatever. The machines are in charge, as usual. But to see AAPL finish the day up 1.5% ... if you believe that the market follows its leaders, is this a positive for the bulls?

With the Euro and dollar up on the bizarro move by the Swiss to dive headfirst into the Euro Pool of Vomit (not to be confused with the Dollar Barf-O-Rama), is there any question that puppetry is alive and well in the Western world? I'm watching from afar, content to remain all cash in this ghetto palace of horrors. When FAZ returns to 55 or 50, I'll follow my nose into the stench of bankster sewage. By then, DGP might be down to 60 and AGQ could be sub-200. Then it gets real interesting.

Blogs
(new) SRSrocco: Frustration with gold-silver analysts (Sept 7)

"James Turk, Rick Rule and John Embry fail to understand the FALLING EROI and its impact on mining going forward. A good percentage of Junior Explorers will never reach the commercial mining stage due to the collapse of the world's financial system, declining ore grades and the falling EROI."

(new) SGS: CFTC Bart Chilton ready to take the stand? (Sept 6)

"Something struck Harvey today, and he spilled the beans."

(new) Le Fly: In big at the end (Sept 6)

"The shadows near my favorite urinal started talking to me late in the day, insisting that I sell my TZA and indeud replace it with egregious amounts of TNA and FL."

(new) Le Fly: Having trouble buying here (Sept 6)

"I am very much interested in going long here. However, I musn't betray my disciplines, buying into names that are in danger of an EPS cut."

(new) Le Fly: Pardon my lack of enthusiasm (Sept 6)

"I never besmirch my fellow investor for trading the tape in front of him. However, you can't go around acting like you have a dog's brain, either. For once, why don't you get ahead of the curve and quit picking up the scraps? ... With the Swiss Franc getting obliterated, thanks to the peg, I'd avoid gold as if it were the Black Death itself. There is a bubble in non-risk assets."

(new) Jake Gint: From my cold, dead hands (Sept 6)

"I believe lovely Skiffles (SKF) is a longer term hold here. ... I'm not even 50% invested in Skiffles, and this is going to be the death trade going forward, by the hammers of Thor and the jockstrap of Odin."

(new) Jake Gint: Where's the safe bet? (Sept 6

"I don't believe SLV and GLD are 'false flag' operations. ... I could be incredibly naive, but I trust the current rule of law enough to believe the audits of these depositories are valid."

Dan Norcini: Daily Comments (Sept 6)

"Have you notice by now that the only thing Central Banks these days seem to be providing is more confusion, uncertainty and volatility?"

Chris Duane (Silver Shield): Even the powerful Swiss Franc gets debased (Sept 6)

"There is not one paper asset in the world that will survive when the dollar collapses. This single largest event in human history will decimate all paper assets, as we finally learn what counter party risk means."

Harvey Organ: Roller coaster ride for silver and gold (Sept 6)

"I promised you on Saturday, that we would get an extreme volatile day today and the bankers threw everything at the gold/silver Comex trying to quell demand. The Swiss tried to stop its currency from being a safe haven by basically pegging it to the Euro. That leaves gold and silver as the last bastion for safe haven status."

Turd Ferguson: (am) Three great ZH reads (Sept 6)

Bruce Krasting: On the Swiss move (Sept 6)

"Do the Swiss have the will to take this fight to the bitter end? Are they so stupid to think that the floor on the Franc has no risk attached to it?"

Zero Hedge: Thank you Swiss National Bank for $2000+ gold (Sept 6)

"As for the amount of times the idiots will need to realize that QE3 coupled with the SNB action means that gold is now valued somewhere well over $2000: at least a few days."

Charles Hugh Smith: Currency wars, trade and consuming crisis of capitalism (Sept 6)

"Nixon had no choice but to jettison paying trade debt in $35/ounce gold. With huge structural deficits required to soak up the surplus production of the free world, the gold would soon be gone and so would the U.S. market for allies' goods."

Economic Collapse: Euroland financial system doomed: 20 quotes from Euro leaders (Sept 6)

"76 percent of Germans say that they have little or no faith in the euro and one recent poll found that German voters are against the introduction of "Eurobonds" by about a 5 to 1 margin."

Golden Truth: Operation Twist? What the hell is that? (Sept 6)

"The Chinese and other Treasury holders will likely use the Fed bid as an opportunity to dump big blocks of their holdings into the market, as they continue to make good on their publicly stated promise to diversify away from holding U.S. dollars."

DTOM: The looting of America: Command Center Wallshington (Sept 6)

"In the early 1990's, Catherine Austin Fitts' company developed software programs that ... moved people off public assistance into productive jobs. Problem: this ruffled the feathers of corporate insiders who were making easy money from their rigged bidding monopoly."

King World News: Ben Davies: Silver headed to $65, gold to soar (Sept 6)

"We are creating that type of pattern where we are really going to start accelerating higher over the next quarter. Silver will take out the $50 highs and will go pushing into the mid 60's."

King World News: Andrew Maguire: LBMA shorts will be forced to take losses (Sept 6)

"Participants will shortly be able to go buy gold on the Pan Asia Exchange, knowing it is backed 100% by physical metal. This is China's way of bringing the RMB into the international market over time as a reserve currency."

Turd Ferguson: (am) I hope you're ready (Sept 6)

> Charts Gold Dec 2-hour | Silver Dec 2-hour

"There is no double-top. That talk is all EE-inspired nonsense. Remember, the Forces of Darkness will always attempt to create selling by painting double-tops, reverse H&Ss, ORDs, etc. Do not fall for this foolishness. Gold is going higher.

Chris Duane (Silver Shield): The meek shall inherit the earth (Sept 6)

"When the dollar collapses, I will be looking forward to communities that will attract the best and brightest to start a new future. These communities will have low taxes and regulations and appreciate the wealth and intellect that it took to invest in precious metals when the world was drunk on the dollar."

Business Insider: Nomura on what the big Swiss move means for gold (Sept 6)

"CHF's appeal as a safe haven is diminishing given the SNB's attempts to weaken the currency. Hence, we could see a situation where gold strengthens and CHF weakens going forward."

Business Insider: Banks likely to pursue 'total war' against FHFA (Sept 6)

"Big banks and their attorneys are more likely to pursue what insiders describe as an all out war strategy in which they go after Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac."

Minyanville: Will Germany walk away from the European Union? (Sept 6)

"Respect the risks, as well as a potential catalyst tomorrow (German vote)."

Business Insider: Deutsche Bank CEO just gave a terrifying speech in Frankfurt (Sept 5)

"The costs of supporting weak member states, particularly from the German perspective, are less than the costs of disintegration. It is a dangerous illusion to believe that a country could do better should it reclaim the sovereignty it has delegated to the EU."

King World News: James Turk: Historic event as gold surges, stock markets tumble (Sept 5)

"This why gold's relentless upside advance continues to surprise so many market observers, they don't understand the power of phase II. The manic phase II lies in the distance somewhere."

Reggie Middleton: Eurocalypse trading update: 100% on point on bearish call (Sept 5)

"One should be foolish to expect anything good anytime soon when all stimulus has been withdrawn, and austerity mode is full ON. The most significant development in the last days is not in the stock market, but in the PIIGS crisis again."

Andrew Cockburn: How the Teamsters beat Goldman Sachs (Jan 8 2010)

The union made it clear that they were prepared to name names. ... Goldman proved unwilling to be charged with throwing 30,000 truckers out of work. The bank not only caved, but offered its help.

Vlogs

(new) Realist News: Why you should NOT play the paper gold/silver game (Sept 6)

(new) manoftruth: Gold hits $1922, where to next? (Sept 6)

(new) wafdawg: Gold, silver and world affairs update (Sept 6)

BrotherJohnF: Silver update - Swiss cheese and naked shorts (Sept 6)

Endless Mountain: The Silver Log (Sept 6)

Endless Mountain: Swiss Franc volatility (Sept 6)

ScrapGoldBusiness: Gold and silver report (Sept 6)

Christopher Greene: Stage 2 of the economic collapse (Sept 6)

Alexiscom1: 100$ silver in 2011, follow up on paper currencies crisis (Sept 6)

H1INC: Gold to silver ratio (Sept 6)

wepollock: Physical world cascade (Sept 6)

george4title: Why voting doesn't matter (Sept 6)

george4vlogging: Intro to fasting (Sept 6)

ScrapGoldBusiness: Silver to go stratospheric? (Sept 5)

Audio

(new) Alex Jones: Max Keiser - 'Gold suppressed by the banksters' (Sept 7)

Blog commentary

silver foil hat: Take out daily gyrations and you have this daily chart (Sept 6)

EconFreeFall: Western vs Asian Advice (Sept 6)

Book

Ferdinand Lips: Gold Wars (2001)

> The battled against sound money as seen from a Swiss perspective

Reports

Forex Live: Nigeria shifting FX reserves to yuan (Sept 6)

Reuters: Swiss franc peg may unleash gold to $2,000/oz (Sept 6)

CNBC: Another reason to buy gold: Franc losing safety status (Sept 6)

Gartman said he regretted ditching two-thirds of his position when gold broke the $1,900/ounce barrier but has replaced half those positions since.

Commodity Online: China's SGE to raise gold, silver margin from Sept 9 (Sept 5)

Daily Telegraph: German endgame for EMU draws ever nearer (Sept 4)

Video

International Business Times: Peter Schiff (Sept 6)

CCTV: China gold stocks slide despite bull market (Sept 5)

RT: JP Morgan profits from food stamps (July 8)

One of my faithful companions

Cheese photo: Derdutchman.wordpress.com

Pains of labor

7:18 am (Hawaii) Slept in early and still didn't get up until 6:30 am. If I hadn't been all cash, it would've been alarm-clock-get-up-at-1:55 am time. And it would've been nuts if I'd held FAZ over the long Labor Day weekend. FAZ went from 60+ on Friday to 66+ this morning and has since dipped back below 64. That's quite a run from a recent low of 50. You had to know it would eventually start running hard to 100, even with a u-turn or two along the way to 55 or 50. The US govt lawsuit against the big banksters just put this FAZ move into warp drive.

I expected the banksters to make a tricky maneuver over the long weekend. Nothing really happened except this: the Swiss diving into the pool of piranhas and sharks with the Euro. Why are the Swiss going against all logic and sacrificing their Francs? Are they being bullied behind the scenes by Euroland?

Swiss: So what's this meeting about?

Greece: Nothing much. You're looking so healthy and young.

Swiss: Yeah. Right. So what is this about?

Germany: Come here.

Swiss: We can talk right here at the table.

Germany: No, let's get some fresh air outside.

Swiss: You're not going to smoke, are you?

Germany: Come along.

Outside on the porch...

Germany: Swissie, you do know the predicament we are in?

Swiss: We?

Germany: Cut the bullshit. I'm about to have civil unrest because of all these bankrupt neighbors. It's not like I can move to a nicer location. I'm stuck.

Swiss: Yes, this is quite a problem you have.

Germany: I'm stuck as long as I'm the only reasonably solvent player on the block.

Swiss: What about your buddy, France?

Germany: Don't fuck with me.

Swiss: Woo so moody.

Germany: I am sorry. I'm cranky these days.

Swiss: Yes, you are trapped.

Germany: Need you to toss a lifeline, my old friend.

Swiss: Me?

Germany: We're asking you nicely.

Swiss: Oh not that again.

Germany: What?

Swiss: You guys just take my kindness for weakness.

Germany: We should work together on this. If I have to deal with hooligans in my country, it would destroy us. So my natural alternative is to seek your help.

Swiss: My Francs!

Germany: We can do this nicely, or ...

Swiss: You bitch.

Germany: I know, I know. It's an ugly thing. Can you blame me?

Swiss: Shit. (long pause) Can I have one of your cigs?

Germany: Of course, my friend. Take the whole pack.

Simplified, yes. But it ain't that complicated, either. Euro goes up. Dollar follows. Markets sell down. Precious metals take a hit. But it will be temporary. Poisonous, toxic assets do not disappear overnight.

And there goes FAZ, back up to 64.32. Dare I step in here? Think I'll wait this one out.

Weekend cinema & library (updated Sun 10 am HST)

Hanalei Rice Mill

6:07 pm (Hawaii) DOWNGRADED! Big news or late news? Seems big to me, though the anticipation of a downgrade by S&P of the US wasn't high.

Standard & Poors: USA long-term rating lowered to 'AA+' (Aug 5)

Los Angeles Times: S&P downgrades US credit rating (Aug 5)

Zero Hedge: S&P downgrades US to AA+, Outlook Negative (Aug 5)

Paul Krugman: S&P and the USA (Aug 5)

Update 6:53 pm Reading Reggie Middleton for the first time in many months is an eye opener. His expertise with options is phenomenal, but coupled with his analysis of banksters and flawed economic policy, it's remarkable to read. (Too bad I don't trade options.) In fact, I have questioned myself for doubting myself. I'm wishing I'd kept a small position in FAZ today, even at 62 or 63. There's a possibility I'll be able to get back in at that level, or even lower, early in the coming week if Bernanke says nothing to curb market fears when the FOMC meets on Tuesday.

Otherwise, it's a long 17 days after that until Jackson Hole.

Here's what Middleton says about the probability of Euro bank runs in the very near future. It's enough to make me want to move my little sacks of moola out of my local bank first thing in the morning. Because of him, I have learned a new, terrifying word: Eurocalypse. I have little doubt that when bank runs seize Europe, fear in the US will start to simmer and then boil, and it'll be a wicked time for those of us who aren't willing to trust Uncle Sam. We might still have time to get our fiat currency out, but one minute too late and the lines will be out the door, and things will be ugly when these domestic banks tell us all they don't have the dollars on hand, in the vault, to satisfy our demands.

It might never happen. But this is getting uglier by the day and I'd rather be a fool holding his cash and metal for safekeeping than see it all disappear in a shitstorm.

More from Reggie Middleton

Reggie Middleton: ECB as European lender of last resort (Aug 5)

RT: Snow globe of denial, Reggie Middleton (May 17)

> Middleton on Bernanke, EU, US and China at 21:00

Reggie Middleton: The potential of a Euro banking crisis (Apr 14)

Reggie Middleton: As the world turns, the contagion spreads (Aug 5)

Update Sat 6:10 pm (Hawaii) So is this what Joe Biden meant when he stirred the pot nearly two years ago?

ABC (video): Joe Biden: Mark my words, international crisis if Obama wins (Oct 20 2008)

ABC (blog): Biden to supporters: 'Gird your loins,' for the next president, it's like cleaning Augean stables (Oct 20 2008)

Update Sun 7:10 am (Hawaii) Just posted by Gold Money News, an interview by James Turk of Jim Sinclair at the GATA Conference in London. Must see. Click here.

Update Sun 9:20 am (Hawaii) One of the better interviews of Peter Schiff I've seen right here. The interviews by Silver Circle are a refreshing change: No time constraints or ridiculous denials by opposing voices. Also, a "lightning round" Q&A by Silver Circle with Schiff here.

Video

(new) MSNBC: Greenspan on Meet the Press (Aug 7)

> Greenspan enters 25:25

RT: Jim Rogers (Aug 5)

ABC Australia: Jim Rogers (Aug 5)

Bloomberg: David Beers, head of S&P sovereign credit ratings (Aug 6)

Bloomberg: Roubini: Jobs number was 'pretty lousy report' (Aug 5)

Bloomberg: Marc Faber (Aug 4)

(new) SilverCircleMovie: Interview with Kevin Innes - Liberty dollar 'criminal' (July 1)

ABC Australia: Clarke, Dawes ask million-dollar questions (May 22)

(new) Silver Circle: Q&A with Peter Schiff (Feb 24)

(new) Silver Circle: Peter Schiff interview (Feb 17)

(new) Fox: US finds $1 trillion in mineral deposits in Afghanistan (June 14 2010)

Vlogs

(new) pdlumina: Israeli markets crash, trading halted within minutes! (Aug 7)

(new) GoldMoneyNews: Jim Sinclair interviewed by James Turk (Aug 7)

(new) Alexiscom1: $100 silver bullion in 2011, US Euro AAA debt crisis (Aug 7)

(new) endlessmountain: Silver log - Technical analysis (Aug 7)

(new) theeastwatch: Rabbits and garden update (Aug 7)

(new) namone11967: Online coin stores gearing up w/ higher spot prices (Aug 6)

(new) Tony Sagami: China downgrades and tongue lashes US debt (Aug 6)

1beinki: 10 trillion dollars to fund my savings account (Aug 6)

Peter Schiff: S&P AA+ rating on US debt not low enough (Aug 6)

College Humor: E-Trade baby loses everything (Aug 6)

slim2open: Hilarious commercials! (Aug 6)

SafeArmsReview: Debt, dummies, the coming collapse and you (Aug 6)

ScrapGoldBusiness: Gold killing the value of diamonds? (Aug 6)

endlessmountain: Investment classes by the numbers (Aug 6)

BrotherJohnF: Silver update - Black Monday and silver algos (Aug 5)

Jim Comiskey: Daily market insights - metals futures (Aug 5)

silverfuturist: Silver down compared to what? (Aug 5)

SGS: Part 7: The EPIC weekend has arrived (Aug 5)

michaelsam9: Last great naked silver short starts (Aug 5)

(new) SilverCirleMovie: Max Keiser in NYC (Aug 5)

(new) GoldMoneyNews: James Turk interviews Eric Sprott (Aug 4)

(new) Larry Edelson: Which markets to touch, and which to avoid... (Aug 4)

> Gold to $7,700; silver very dangerous, will move to 42-43, then collapse to 28-30.

BrotherJohnF: Silver update - Deflation scare redux (Aug 4)

SGTbull07: James Anderson: Greatest wealth transfer in history (part 1) (part 2) (Aug 4)

Freedomain Radio: The short, unhappy lives of fiat currencies (Aug 3)

Rick Rule: Cash will give you the courage (May 11)

Audio

(new) Debt Deflation: Steve Keen debate with Chris Caton (Aug 7)

(new) Jim Puplava: Interview with Bert Dohmen - Gold should be over $9,000/oz (Aug 6)

King World News: Weekly metals wrap with Bill Haynes, Dan Norcini (Aug 6)

King World News: Jim Rickards (Aug 6)

King World News: Doug Casey (Aug 6)

King World News: Rick Rule (Aug 5)

Blogs

(new) Zero Hedge: G7 preparing statement to support dollar, EU before Asia open (Aug 7)

(new) Turd Ferguson: Re: Tonight. I have no idea. (Aug 7)

(new) Zero Hedge: S&P explains why the '$2 trillion error' is irrelevant (Aug 7)

(new) Zero Hedge: Citi battens down hatches, prepares for global risk offenses in a few short hours (Aug 7)

(new) Zero Hedge: Apmex on hiatus until Asia open (Aug 7)

> From Apmex.com: *Attention - Due to the uncertainty in the global precious metals markets, we will not be able to accept any additional orders until the global markets re-open in Asia. We expect to be accepting orders around 6:15 pm EST, Sunday August 7th, 2011, following the market open.

(new) Silver Shield: Apmex warning (Aug 7)

(new) Silver Shield: Retire off of $30,000 (Aug 7)

(new) Alasdair Macleod: Keynes vs Hayek (Aug 7)

(new) Brandon Smith: America 'makes the cut' - so what happens next? (Aug 7)

(new) Jesse's Cafe Americain: It's the unfunded wars, financial fraud and unwillingness to reform (Aug 7)

(new) Debt Deflation: Steve Keen debate with Chris Caton (Aug 7)

(new) Luc Vallee: The two faces of China (part 1) (Aug 7)

(new) Harvey Organ: S&P downgrades USA debt (Aug 6)

(new) Silver Shield: Turk, Sprott and silver (Aug 6)

King World News: Norcini - How S&P downgrade of US debt will impact markets (Aug 6)

> "I expect the reaction to the news in Asian trade Sunday evening will be the US Treasury markets open lower with gold opening higher from the get go."

SGS: Epic weekend news #3: Germany says, f--k it, Italy is on its own (Aug 6)

Zero Hedge: Germany says Italy is too big for EFSF to save (Aug 6)

Zero Hedge: Emergency meetings galore (Aug 6)

NIA: Shocked by S&P downgrade of US debt rating (Aug 6)

Gary North: The Yellow Fever Economy (Aug 6)

King World News: Jim Rickards - Who 'really' controls the gold (Aug 5)

Dan Norcini: Riding in the kangaroo pouch (Aug 5)

SGS: Epic weekend news #2: White House says, 'Go f--k yourself' to downgrade (Aug 5)

SGS: Epic weekend news #1: SP downgrades US debt (Aug 5)

Sean Hyman: US govt could take 14% of your wealth... overnight (Aug 5)

Zero Hedge: S&P downgrades US to AA+, Outlook Negative (Aug 5)

Scott Blier: What's it gonna be, near-term? (Aug 5)

> Chart: QE2 rally

SGS: W>T>F>is>this? (Aug 5)

Turd Ferguson: (pm) Three weekly charts (Aug 5)

Le Fly: (pm) What does it all mean? (Aug 5)

Le Fly: (pm) The bottom is in (Aug 5)

Le Fly: (pm) New plan (Aug 5)

Turd Ferguson: (am) Post BLSBS (Aug 5)

Intel Hub: Costly US power grid tests approved without public consent (Aug 5)

(new) Roman Baudzus: Greek central bank adds to gold reserves (Aug 4)

Dan Norcini: Extreme volatility in gold as market digest rumors (Aug 4)

Reuters: Italy says Asia asking why ECB isn't buying bonds (Aug 4)

Turd Ferguson: It has to be said, so I'll say it (Aug 4)

Turd Ferguson: Overnight and tomorrow (Aug 4)

Le Fly: On second thought, today was not my worst day (Aug 4)

Washington's Blog: The average life expectancy for a fiat currency is 27 years (Aug 2)

Jack Barnes: The $1 billion Armageddon trade placed against the US (July 25)

Blog commentary

stingbee30: In these environments, you need to throw away the technicals (Aug 7)

GoldistheFuture: Jim Sinclair: 'This will result in producing gold mining shares becoming the utilities of 2016 onward' (Aug 6)

pailin: FU Italy :) (Aug 6)

Reports

(new) Bloomberg: Big foreign buyers likely to stick with Treasuries (Aug 7)

(new) Bloomberg: Greenspan sees stocks falling after S&P cut (Aug 7)

(new) Bloomberg: G-7 finance chiefs talk amid Euro, US turmoil (Aug 7)

(new) Bloomberg: Muni market prepares for lost AAA ratings (Aug 7)

(new) Bloomberg: Israeli stock index tumbles most since 2000 (Aug 7)

(new) Bloomberg: France's AAA rating may be vulnerable (Aug 7)

(new) Bloomberg: Dubai shares drop most since February (Aug 7)

(new) Bloomberg: Japan official warns of more yen selling (Aug 7)

(new) Standard and Poor's: Clarifies assumption used on discretionary spending growth (Aug 6)

AMEinfo: Saudi market crash raises fears over domino effect in GCC (Aug 6)

Reuters: China blasts US over debt problems (Aug 6)

Reuters: World leaders confer on debt crisses this weekend (Aug 6)

US Dept of Treasury: Just the facts: S&P's $2 trillion mistake (Aug 6)

Reuters: Fund managers see tough times for Treasuries (Aug 5)

Xinhua: NATO planning military campaign against Syria: Russian envoy (Aug 5)

Los Angeles Times: S&P downgrades US credit rating (Aug 5)

WSJ: Gold: JP Morgan 'loves' it big time (Aug 5)

WSJ: Italy speeds its path to balanced budget (Aug 5)

ABC: Govt officials: US expecting S&P downgrade — based on 'serious mistake' in analysis (Aug 5)

(new) MarketWatch: Harry Schulz's last testament (Jan 10)

(new) ABC: Not-so-safe deposit boxes: States seize citizens' property to balance their budgets (May 12 2008)

Metal bling

richardbask4321: Silver collection 153 oz (Aug 6)

Metal shop

(new) DelValleySilver.com: Silver Circle Movie round (Aug 7)

> Also, DVS silver token (1 oz)