Miercoles 09/09/15 Solicitudes de hipotecas

[Fenix]

Russia Sends More Tank Landing Ships, Military Aircraft To Syria
Submitted by Tyler D.
09/09/2015 - 15:25

Now that Europe's migrant crisis is making international headlines on a nightly basis, France and Britain are set to use the influx of aslylum seekers as a pretext for airstrikes in Syria. The timing could not be more convenient as new "intelligence" suggests that Russia is expanding its presence in the Assad stronghold around Latakia. For its part, Germany is out warning the Kremlin against "military engagement."

[Fenix]

How To Beat Every Hedge Fund in Just 2 Trades & 4 Hours A Day
Submitted by Tyler D.
09/09/2015 15:50 -0400

Forget Risk-Parity... ignore volatility-targeting... Risk management is for losers, value-investing is for dummies, and chasing momentum is for suckers... The path to successful trading in the new normal is easy... and involves just 4 simple steps...

Step 1: Put on Pants;

Step 2: Buy S&P 500 Futures at Midnight ET;

Step 3: Sell S&P 500 Futures at 4amET;

Step 4: Go back to bed...

Probably the most stunning chart we have ever seen - note the red line's performance - minimal drawdown, maximal return...

h/t @NanexLLC

[Fenix]

Economy In Pictures: Is It Strong Enough?
09/09/2015 16:29 -0400
Submitted by Lance Roberts

I have written extensively about the data behind the headline media reports. I have also discussed the importance of the relationship between the underlying data trends relative to broader macroeconomic perspectives. However, it is sometimes helpful just to view the various economic indicators and draw your own conclusions outside of someone else's opinion.

With the economy now more than 6-years into an expansion, which is long by historical standards, the question for you to answer by looking at the charts below is:

"Are we closer to an economic recession or a continued expansion?"

Economic-Recoveries-Historical-090915

How you answer that question should have a significant impact on your investment outlook as financial markets tend to lose roughly 30% on average during recessionary periods. However, with margin debt at record levels, earnings deteriorating and China struggling with a sinking economy, this is hardly a normal market environment within which we are currently invested.

Therefore, I present a series of charts which view the overall economy from the same perspective utilizing an annualized rate of change. In some cases, where the data is extremely volatile, I have used a 3-month average to expose the underlying data trend. Any other special data adjustments are noted as well.
Leading Economic Indicators
LEI-Coincident-Lagging-Ratio-090215
Durable Goods
Durable-Goods-090915

Durable-Goods-090915-2
Investment
GDI-090915

Private-Fixed-Investment-GDP-090915

Fixed-Investment-PCE-090915
ISM Composite Index
ISM-Composite-090915
Employment & Industrial Production
Employment-16-54-090915

Employment-Population-090915

Employment-BD-Adj-090915

To understand more about the difference between the BLS employment report with and without the Birth/Death adjustment read this.

Capacity-Utilization-IP-090915
Retail Sales

Retail-Sales-3-mo-Avg-090915.

Retail-Sales-CP-090915
Social Welfare

Social-Benefits-Percent-DPI-090915
The Broad View
GDP-6-Panel-090915
Economic Composite

(Note: The Economic Composite is a weighted index of multiple economic survey and indicators - read more about this indicator)

EOCI-1974-Prsent-LEI-090915

If you are expecting an economic recovery, and a continuation of the bull market, then the economic data must begin to improve markedly in the months ahead. The problem has been that each bounce in the economic data has failed within the context of a declining trend. This is not a good thing and is why we continue to witness an erosion in the growth rates of corporate earnings and profitability. Eventually, that erosion combined, with excessive valuations, will weigh on the financial markets which is potentially much of what we are witnessing now.

For the Federal Reserve, these charts make the case that continued monetary interventions are not healing the economy, but rather just keeping it afloat by dragging forward future consumption. The problem is that it leaves a void in the future that must be continually filled.

The question on everyone's mind is whether the economy is strong enough to withstand rate hikes by the Federal Reserve? In my opinion, the answer is no. The economy continues to ebb and flow between weak growth and no growth. This puts the Federal Reserve at risk of a policy mistake that could trip the economy into an outright recession. While there have certainly been positive bumps in the data, as pent-up demand is released back into the economy, the inability to sustain growth is most concerning.

But then again, that is just what I see.

[Fenix]

Mom And Pop "Will Probably Get Trampled": Alliance Bernstein Warns On Bond ETF Armageddon
Submitted by Tyler D.
09/09/2015 16:54 -0400

Right up until China threw the financial world into a frenzy by devaluing the yuan right smack in the middle of a stock market meltdown that Beijing was struggling to contain, bond market liquidity was all anyone wanted to talk about.

Of course we’ve been talking about it for years (literally), as have a few of the sellside’s sharper strategists, but earlier this year the mainstream financial news media caught on, followed in short order by the rest of the Wall Street penguin brigade, and before you knew it, even the likes of Jamie Dimon were shouting from the rooftops about illiquid corporate credit markets.

The problem, in short, is that the post-crisis regulatory regime has made dealers less willing to warehouse bonds, leading to lower average trade sizes, sharply lower turnover, and a generalized lack of market depth. That in turn, means that trading in size without triggering some kind of dramatic move in prices is more difficult.

But that’s not the end of the story.

Seven years of ZIRP have i) herded yield-starved investors into riskier assets, and ii) encouraged corporates to take advantage of voracious demand and low borrowing costs by issuing more debt. The rapid proliferation of ETFs and esoteric bond funds has encouraged this phenomenon by giving investors easier access to corners of the bond market where they might normally have never dared to tread. These vehicles have also given investors the illusion of liquidity.

Ultimately then, the picture that emerges is of an increasingly crowded theatre (lots of IG and HY supply and plenty of demand) with an ever smaller exit (dealers increasingly unlikely to inventory bonds in a pinch).

With that as the backdrop, we bring you the following excerpts from a new paper by Alliance Bernstein:

We agree that low liquidity is a risk—but by focusing on regulations, we think most investors are underestimating the gravity of that risk. While new regulations have contributed to the problem, there are sev- eral less obvious causes that have the potential to make the liquidity crunch worse.



Some stem from global central bank policies: easy money has driven government bond yields to record lows and forced yield-hungry small investors to crowd into the same trades. Another driver is caution by large institutional investors, who are less and less willing to take the long view in bonds and ride out short-term market volatility.



While regulatory changes have reduced the supply of liquidity, these trends have drastically increased the potential demand for it. None on its own is likely to trigger a major market crisis. But taken together, they’re creating a lot of dry tinder. And the next shock to hit markets— that prompts everyone to sell—might be the spark that sets every- thing ablaze. With volatility in fixed-income markets rising, investors can’t afford to take this risk lightly.

And here’s some further color on central banks’ role in creating these conditions (note the bit about what happens when markets that are driven solely by central bank liquidity suddenly reverse course):

When liquidity evaporated in 2008, central banks worldwide stepped in to provide it by slashing interest rates and eventually buying huge amounts of government bonds. These were emergen- cy policies, for use in an emergency. They were designed to flood the financial system with money, encourage risk-taking and get the economy moving again. Investors responded as policymakers hoped they would—by charging into riskier assets to earn a decent return.

If rallies are being driven by central bank liquidity rather than fundamentals, it follows that sell-offs should be, too. In fact, over the past two years, markets have undergone a series of sell- offs—one might call them miniature fire sales—in which bonds, stocks, commodities and other assets have all declined. None of these episodes have lasted as long or done as much damage as the sharply correlated declines in 2008—at least, not yet. Still, the pattern is disturbing.

Ironically, central bank policies that were applied with the best intentions and designed in part to boost liquidity are helping it to dry up. These easy money policies aren’t over yet. But with the Federal Reserve likely to raise interest rates later this year, the beginning of the end is in sight.

Finally, here's a bit more on the relationship between reduced dealer inventories, increased access to the bond market for "mom-and-pop", ETF liquidity, and what happens when someone yells "fire":

While banks have been retreating from the bond market, investors have been charging into it. This is a direct result of central banks’ easy money policies: by driving interest rates to record lows, these policies pushed investors—even income-starved mom-and-pop investors—into riskier assets, such as high-yield bonds and emerging-market debt, to earn a decent return. In 2014, retail-oriented mutual and exchange-traded funds owned nearly 23% of the US high-yield market, up from 15% in 2006. Retail ownership of investment-grade bonds more than doubled over the same period.



The result: large numbers of investors are crowded into the same trades. That causes prices to trend strongly in one direction, but may leave the market vulnerable to a sudden correction if everyone wants to sell at once.



The fact that small investors are playing a bigger role in these mar- kets is important, because they tend to move into and out of assets often, depending on the latest headline or price trend. In recent years, investors have charged into—and out of—various assets, including high-yield bonds and emerging-market debt, with alarming frequency (Display 4).





What’s more, a great many investors—and we suspect this even goes for some large ones—are venturing into riskier corners of the credit markets because central banks’ low-interest-rate policies have made it hard for them to find income elsewhere. Many are taking on more risk than they ordinarily would. When interest rates start to rise, government bonds or even cash may suddenly look more attractive, potentially causing a rush for the door.



In theory, investors can exit an open-ended mutual fund or an ETF at will. But the growing popularity of these funds forces them to invest in an ever larger share of less liquid bonds. If everyone wants to exit at once, prices could fall very far, very fast. A lucky few may get out in time. Others will probably get trampled.

Note that the last passage there is precisely what we began warning about earlier this year and indeed, the relationship between retail flows, ETFs, and shriking dealer inventories was recently the subject of a live debate between Carl Icahn and Larry Fink during which Icahn called BlackRock a "dangerous company" for providing the vehicles through which investors have been allowed to crowd into bonds.

For an in-depth look at what we've called "ETF Phantom liquidty" see our complete guide here, but for now, recall that as Howard Marks warned earlier this year, an ETF "can't be more liquid than the underlying and we know the underlying can become quite illiquid." This means that in the event flows into HY (or any other type of fund for that matter) suddenly become largely non-diversifiable (i.e. unidirectional), fund managers will either need to meet redemptions with borrowed cash or else venture into the illiquid markets for the underlying bonds and risk tipping the first dominoe on the way to a firesale.

With that, we'll close by reiterating the fact that no fund manager in the world will be able to line up enough emergency liquidity to avoid tapping the corporate credit market in the event of panic selling in the increasingly crowded market for bond funds. In other words, when the exodus comes, the illiquidity that's been chasing markets for the better part of seven years will finally catch up, and at that point, all bets are officially off.

[Fenix]

In Ironic Twist, Stock Crash Leads To First CNBC Ratings Increase In Years
Submitted by Tyler D.
09/09/2015 17:55 -0400

If CNBC's intention when moving its Squawk Box crew from Englewood Cliffs in NJ to the Rock Center in Manhattan, not to mention hiring Andrew Ross Sorkin four years years ago (there has been a 23% decline in total viewership since then) was to boost the popularity of the sagging flagship program which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, it failed.

Yet where CNBC won, is in the irony department, because while its ratings had sunk so law at the end of 2014 that - as we first reported - CNBC was forced to ask Nielsen to "stop" counting its viewers, in the past several month Squawk Box's viewership had experienced a renaissance of sorts. Why? For the same reason CNBC's viewers had all but disappeared: the recent surge in volatility as a result of the first market correction since 2011, following the most artificial, laughable and central-bank orceshtrated rally in history.

Ironic, because it is precisely CNBC's constant cheerleading of what little viewers it had left that pushed the market to such nosebleed levels that on August 24 it suffered its second flash crash in just five years.

It is even more ironic, because instead of a rational, objective coverage of the newsflow, the constant stream of cherry-picked, "double-seasonally adjusted" good news is precisely why viewers had left the Comcast cable station in droves, realizing the disconnect between the economy and stocks is simply too ridiculous to stomach, and that they are being lied to with every instance of the "BTFD" dogma.

As a result, it wasn't until the much dreaded market crash that viewers finally came back. At least some of them.

The same pattern is visible when looking at the entire CNBC viewership, for both the 25-54 demographic and total audiences. Still, for what many - and certainly google trends - said was the most dramatic crash since 2008, the recent rebound is simply far too little, and certainly too late.

In any event, now that CNBC's advertisers have seen it can be done, don't be surprised if suddenly the channel's "cautiously optimistic" tone undergoes a dramatic transformation for the more objective and/or nuanced. After all, in a day and age when "apps are the next big thing on TV", suddenly every CNBC anchor is expendable unless revenue quotas are met.

[Fenix]

Brazil Cut To Junk By S&P, ETF Falls 5% Post-Mkt
Submitted by Tyler D.
09/09/2015 - 18:17

Brazil, whose economy officially slid into recession in Q2 - a quarter during which Brazilians suffered through the worst inflation-growth outcome (i.e. stagflation) in over a decade - and whose efforts to plug a yawning budget gap are complicated by political infighting and a growing public outcry against embattled President Dilma Rousseff, has been cut to junk by S&P.

[Fenix]

David Stockman Sums It All Up In 3 Minutes
Submitted by Tyler D.
09/09/2015 19:00 -0400

Stockman unleashes truthiness hell on Bloomberg TV: "Federal Reserve [actions] will have disastrous long-term consequences... when you deny price-discovery in the market for so long, it is a massive subsidy to speculation... In an era of peak debt, the only thing zero interest rates achieve is create an enormous incentive for Wall Street to gamble more and more recklessly..."

195 seconds... watch, listen, and think...

[Fenix]

Guess Who Was Buying Stocks (Again)?
Submitted by Tyler D.
09/09/2015 18:35 -0400

Corporate buybacks, based on BofAML's client flows, are at the highest four-week-average level in 18 months as the irrationally non-economic buyers of last resort pile in to tumbling prices to maintain their CFO's and CEO's year-end performance bonuses. While hope remains that this pick-up will continue, the demise of the corporate credit market suggests the last greater fool just entered the market...

So who was buying? Simple! Companies, again!

But do not expect it to last...

It's hard to justify blowing cash on buybacks when the cost of financing is surging... and liquidity is drying up for even the best issuers.

This week's calendar (of corporate issuance) looks huge (as evident in higher yields thanks to rate-locks) but it all seems desperate last-minute deals (with decent concessions) ahead of The Fed's decision.

[Fenix]

If You Don’t Think Americans Have Lost Our Freedoms, READ THIS
Submitted by George Washington on 09/09/2015 13:37 -0400

http://www.theispot.com/images/source/F ... pgPainting by Anthony Freda: www.AnthonyFreda.com
The Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave The Land of the Fleeced and the Home of the Slave

This post explains the liberties guaranteed in the Bill of Rights – the first 10 amendments to the United States Constitution – and provides a scorecard on the extent of the loss of each right.
First Amendment

The 1st Amendment protects speech, religion, assembly and the press:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

The Supreme Court has also interpreted the First Amendment as protecting freedom of association.

However, the government is arresting those speaking out … and violently crushing peaceful assemblies which attempt to petition the government for redress.

A federal judge found that the law allowing indefinite detention of Americans without due process has a “chilling effect” on free speech. And see this and this.

There are also enacted laws allowing the secret service to arrest anyone protesting near the president or other designated folks (that might explain incidents like this).

Mass spying by the NSA violates our freedom of association.

The threat of being labeled a terrorist for exercising our First Amendment rights certainly violates the First Amendment. The government is using laws to crush dissent, and it’s gotten so bad that even U.S. Supreme Court justices are saying that we are descending into tyranny. (And the U.S. is doing the same things that tyrannical governments have done for 5,000 years to crush dissent.)

For example, the following actions may get an American citizen living on U.S. soil labeled as a “suspected terrorist” today:

* Taking any steps to protect your privacy (and see this)

* Being a hippy

* Complaining about the taste of your tap water

* Being young (if you live near a battle zone, you are fair game; and see this)

* Acting like a kid

* Using social media

* Reporting or doing journalism (and here and here)

* Having “strange odors” or “bright colored stains on clothes” (what if you eat mustard or ketchup?)

* Speaking out against government policies

* Protesting anything (such as participating in the “Occupy” or “Tea Party” movements). For example, Department of Defense training manuals classify all protest as “low-level terrorism”. And see this, this, this and this

* Questioning war (even though war reduces our national security; and see this)

* Criticizing the government’s targeting of innocent civilians with drones (although killing innocent civilians with drones is one of the main things which increases terrorism. And see this)

* Asking questions about pollution (even at a public Congressional hearing?)

* Paying cash at an Internet cafe

* Asking questions about Wall Street shenanigans

* Holding gold

* Creating alternative currencies

* Stocking up on more than 7 days of food (even though all Mormons are taught to stockpile food, and most Hawaiians store up on extra food)

* Having bumper stickers saying things like “Know Your Rights Or Lose Them”

* Investigating factory farming

* Infringing a copyright

* Taking pictures or videos

* Talking to police officers

* Wearing a hoodie

* Driving a van

* Writing on a piece of paper

* (Not having a Facebook account may soon be added)

And holding the following beliefs may also be considered grounds for suspected terrorism:

* Being frustrated with “mainstream ideologies”

* Being a libertarian

* Liking the Founding Fathers

* Being a Christian

* Being anti-tax, anti-regulation or for the gold standard

* Being “reverent of individual liberty”

* Being “anti-nuclear”

* “Believe in conspiracy theories”

* “A belief that one’s personal and/or national “way of life” is under attack”

* “Impose strict religious tenets or laws on society (fundamentalists)”

* “Insert religion into the political sphere”

* “Those who seek to politicize religion”

* “Supported political movements for autonomy”

* Being “anti-abortion”

* Being “anti-Catholic”

* Being “anti-global”

* “Suspicious of centralized federal authority”

* “Fiercely nationalistic (as opposed to universal and international in orientation)”

* “A belief in the need to be prepared for an attack either by participating in … survivalism”

* Opposing genetically engineered food

* Opposing surveillance

And see this. (Of course, Muslims are more or less subject to a separate system of justice in America.)

And 1st Amendment rights are especially chilled when power has become so concentrated that the same agency which spies on all Americans also decides who should be assassinated.

Additionally:

Despite the clear protections found in the First Amendment, the freedoms described therein are under constant assault. Increasingly, Americans are being arrested and charged with bogus “contempt of cop” charges such as “disrupting the peace” or “resisting arrest” for daring to film police officers engaged in harassment or abusive practices. Journalists are being prosecuted for reporting on whistleblowers. States are passing legislation to muzzle reporting on cruel and abusive corporate practices. Religious ministries are being fined for attempting to feed and house the homeless. Protesters are being tear-gassed, beaten, arrested and forced into “free speech zones.” And under the guise of “government speech,” the courts have reasoned that the government can discriminate freely against any First Amendment activity that takes place within a government forum.

Second Amendment

The 2nd Amendment states:

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

Gun control and gun rights advocates obviously have very different views about whether guns are a force for violence or for good.

But even a top liberal Constitutional law expert reluctantly admits that the right to own a gun is as important a Constitutional right as freedom of speech or religion:

Like many academics, I was happy to blissfully ignore the Second Amendment. It did not fit neatly into my socially liberal agenda.



***



It is hard to read the Second Amendment and not honestly conclude that the Framers intended gun ownership to be an individual right. It is true that the amendment begins with a reference to militias: “A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.” Accordingly, it is argued, this amendment protects the right of the militia to bear arms, not the individual.



Yet, if true, the Second Amendment would be effectively declared a defunct provision. The National Guard is not a true militia in the sense of the Second Amendment and, since the District and others believe governments can ban guns entirely, the Second Amendment would be read out of existence.



***



More important, the mere reference to a purpose of the Second Amendment does not alter the fact that an individual right is created. The right of the people to keep and bear arms is stated in the same way as the right to free speech or free press. The statement of a purpose was intended to reaffirm the power of the states and the people against the central government. At the time, many feared the federal government and its national army. Gun ownership was viewed as a deterrent against abuse by the government, which would be less likely to mess with a well-armed populace.



Considering the Framers and their own traditions of hunting and self-defense, it is clear that they would have viewed such ownership as an individual right — consistent with the plain meaning of the amendment.



None of this is easy for someone raised to believe that the Second Amendment was the dividing line between the enlightenment and the dark ages of American culture. Yet, it is time to honestly reconsider this amendment and admit that … here’s the really hard part … the NRA may have been right. This does not mean that Charlton Heston is the new Rosa Parks or that no restrictions can be placed on gun ownership. But it does appear that gun ownership was made a protected right by the Framers and, while we might not celebrate it, it is time that we recognize it.

The gun control debate – including which weapons and magazines are banned – is still in flux …

However:

Americans remain powerless to defend themselves against SWAT team raids and government agents armed to the teeth with military weapons better suited for the battlefield than for a country founded on freedom. Police shootings of unarmed citizens continue to outrage communities, while little is really being done to demilitarize law enforcement agencies. Indeed, just recently, North Dakota became the first state to legalize law enforcement use of drones armed with weapons such as tear gas, rubber bullets, beanbags, pepper spray and Tasers.

Third Amendment

The 3rd Amendment prohibits the government forcing people to house soldiers:

No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.

A recent lawsuit by a Nevada family – covered by (Mother Jones, Fox News and Courthouse News – alleges violation of the Third Amendment.

Moreover, the military is arguably quartering “digital” troops within our homes.

Indeed:

With the police increasingly training like the military, acting like the military, and posing as military forces—complete with military weapons, assault vehicles, etc.—it is clear that we now have what the founders feared most—a standing army on American soil. Moreover, as a result of SWAT team raids (more than 80,000 a year) where police invade homes, often without warrants, and injure and even kill unarmed citizens, the barrier between public and private property has been done away with, leaving us with armed government agents who act as if they own our property.

In America, Journalists Are Considered Terrorists
Painting by Anthony Freda: www.AnthonyFreda.com.
Fourth Amendment

The 4th Amendment prevents unlawful search and seizure:

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

But the government is spying on everything we do … without any real benefit or justification.

Indeed, experts say that the type of spying being carried out by the NSA and other agencies is exactly the kind of thing which King George imposed on the American colonists … which led to the Revolutionary War.

And many Constitutional experts – such as Jonathan Turley – think that the police went too far in Boston with lockdowns and involuntary door-to-door searches.

In reality:

The Fourth Amendment has suffered the greatest damage in recent years and been all but eviscerated by an unwarranted expansion of police powers that include strip searches and even anal and vaginal searches of citizens, surveillance and intrusions justified in the name of fighting terrorism, as well as the outsourcing of otherwise illegal activities to private contractors. Case in point: Texas police forced a 21-year-old woman to undergo a warrantless vaginal search by the side of the road after she allegedly “rolled” through a stop sign.



The use of civil asset forfeiture schemes to swell the coffers of police forces has also continued to grow in popularity among cash-strapped states. The federal government continues to strong-arm corporations into providing it with access to Americans’ private affairs, from emails and online transactions to banking and web surfing. Coming in the wake of massive leaks about the inner workings of the NSA and the massive secretive surveillance state, it was revealed that the government threatened to fine Yahoo $250,000 every day for failing to comply with the NSA’s mass data collection program known as PRISM. Meanwhile, AT&T has enjoyed a profitable and “extraordinary, decades-long” relationship with the NSA.



The technological future appears to pose even greater threats to what’s left of our Fourth Amendment rights, with advances in biometric identification and microchip implants on the horizon making it that much easier for the government to track not only our movements and cyber activities but our very cellular beings. Barclays has already begun using a finger-scanner as a form of two-step authentication to give select customers access to their accounts. Similarly, Motorola has been developing thin “digital tattoos” that will ensure that a phone’s owner is the only person who may unlock it. Not to be overlooked are the aerial spies—surveillance drones—about to take to the skies in coming years, as well as the Drive Smart programs that will spy on you (your speed, movements, passengers, etc.) while you travel the nation’s highways and byways.


Paintings by Anthony Freda: www.AnthonyFreda.com.
Fifth Amendment

The 5th Amendment addresses due process of law, eminent domain, double jeopardy and grand jury:

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

But the American government has shredded the 5th Amendment by subjecting us to indefinite detention and taking away our due process rights.

The government claims the right to assassinate or indefinitely detain any American citizen on U.S. citizen without any due process. And see this.

For example, American citizens are being detained in Guantanamo-like conditions in Chicago … including:

* Brutality

* Being held in secret

* Not even telling a suspect’s lawyer whether his client is being held?

And see this, this and this.

As such, the government is certainly depriving people of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.

There are additional corruptions of 5th Amendment rights – such as property being taken for private purposes. And the right to remain silent is gone.

The percentage of prosecutions in which a defendant is denied a grand jury is difficult to gauge, as there is so much secrecy surrounding many terrorism trials.

HUNG LIBERTY (NYSE)Image by William Banzai
Sixth Amendment

The 6th Amendment guarantees the right to a speedy ad public trial, by an impartial jury in the location where the crime allegedly occurred, to hear the criminal charges levied against us and to be able to confront the witnesses who have testified against us, as well as speedy criminal trials, and a public defender for those who cannot hire an attorney:

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence.

Subjecting people to indefinite detention or assassination obviously violates the 6th Amendment right to a speedy and public jury trial. In both cases, the defendants is “disposed of” without ever receiving any trial at all … let alone a speedy or public one. In neither case do they get a jury, a defense lawyer, or the right to call their own witnesses. And they often never even hear the charges against them.

Indefinite detentions usually don’t occur where the alleged crime occurred, but at a black site.

More and more commonly, the government prosecutes cases based upon “secret evidence” that they don’t show to the defendant … or sometimes even the judge hearing the case.

The government uses “secret evidence” to spy on Americans, prosecute leaking or terrorism charges (even against U.S. soldiers) and even assassinate people. And see this and this.

Secret witnesses are being used in some cases. And sometimes lawyers are not even allowed to read their own briefs.

Indeed, even the laws themselves are now starting to be kept secret. And it’s about to get a lot worse.

Moreover, government is “laundering” information gained through mass surveillance through other agencies, with an agreement that the agencies will “recreate” the evidence in a “parallel construction” … so they don’t have to admit that the evidence came from unconstitutional spying. A former top NSA official says that this is the opposite of following the Fourth Amendment, but is a “totalitarian process” which shows that we’re in a “police state”.

And there are two systems of justice in America … one for the big banks and other fatcats, and one for everyone else. The government made it official policy not to prosecute fraud, even though fraud is the main business model adopted by Wall Street. Indeed, the biggest financial crime in world history, the largest insider trading scandal of all time, illegal raiding of customer accounts and blatant financing of drug cartels and terrorists have all been committed recently without any real criminal prosecution or jail time.

On the other hand, government prosecutors are using the legal system to crush dissent and to silence whistleblowers.

And some of the nation’s most powerful judges have lost their independence … and are in bed with the powers-that-be.

Constitutional lawyer John Whitehead explains:

The Fifth Amendment and the Sixth Amendment work in tandem. These amendments supposedly ensure that you are innocent until proven guilty, and government authorities cannot deprive you of your life, your liberty or your property without the right to an attorney and a fair trial before a civilian judge. However, in the new suspect society in which we live, where surveillance is the norm, these fundamental principles have been upended. Certainly, if the government can arbitrarily freeze, seize or lay claim to your property (money, land or possessions) under government asset forfeiture schemes, you have no true rights. That’s the crux of a case before the U.S. Supreme Court challenging the government’s use of asset forfeiture to strip American citizens of the funds needed to hire a defense attorney of their choosing.

Seventh Amendment

The 7th Amendment guarantees trial by jury in federal court for civil cases:

In Suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise re-examined in any Court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.

But there are two systems of justice in America … one for the big banks and other fatcats, and one for everyone else. So good luck going after the powers-that-be.

And the World Justice Project – a bipartisan, independent group with honorary chairs including numerous current and former Supreme Court Justices – released a report saying that Americans have less access to justice than most wealthy countries … and many developing nations. The report finds that Americans have less access to justice than Botswanans, and that only the wealthy have the resources to protect rights using the court system:

For example, Germans sue equally whether they are rich or poor … but in America, only the wealthy have the resources to protect rights using the court system:

(And the austerity caused by the highest levels of inequality in world history – which are in turn is caused by socialist actions by our government, which have destroyed the Founding Fathers’ vision of prosperity – is causing severe budget cuts to the courts, resulting in the wheels of justice slowing down considerably.)

Federal judges have also recently decided that they can pre-judge cases before the plaintiff even has the chance to conduct discovery … and throw cases out if they don’t like plaintiff’s case.

And:

The populace has no idea of what’s in the Constitution—civic education has virtually disappeared from most school curriculums—that inevitably translates to an ignorant jury incapable of distinguishing justice and the law from their own preconceived notions and fears. However, as a growing number of citizens are coming to realize, the power of the jury to nullify the government’s actions—and thereby help balance the scales of justice—is not to be underestimated. Jury nullification reminds the government that it’s “we the people” who can and should be determining what laws are just, what activities are criminal and who can be jailed for what crimes.

Painting by Anthony Freda: www.AnthonyFreda.com
Eighth Amendment

The 8th Amendment prohibits cruel and unusual punishment:

Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.

Indefinite detention and assassination are obviously cruel and unusual punishment.

The widespread system of torture carried out in the last 10 years – with the help of other countries – violates the 8th Amendment. Many want to bring it back … or at least justify its past use.

While Justice Scalia disingenuously argues that torture does not constitute cruel and unusual punishment because it is meant to produce information – not punish – he’s wrong. It’s not only cruel and unusual … it is technically a form of terrorism.

And government whistleblowers are being cruelly and unusually punished with unduly harsh sentences meant to intimidate anyone else from speaking out.

Moreover:

A California appeals court is being asked to consider “whether years of unpredictable delays from conviction to execution” constitute cruel and unusual punishment. For instance, although 900 individuals have been sentenced to death in California since 1978, only 13 have been executed. As CBS News reports, “More prisoners have died of natural causes on death row than have perished in the death chamber.”

Ninth Amendment

The 9th Amendment provides that people have other rights, even if they aren’t specifically listed in the Constitution:

The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

We can debate what our inherent rights as human beings are. I believe they include the right to a level playing field, and access to non-toxic food and water. You may disagree.

But everyone agrees that the government should not actively encourage fraud and manipulation. However, the government – through its malignant, symbiotic relation with big corporations – is interfering with our aspirations for economic freedom, safe food and water (instead of arsenic-laden, genetically engineered junk), freedom from undue health hazards such as irradiation due to government support of archaic nuclear power designs, and a level playing field (as opposed to our crony capitalist system in which the little guy has no shot due to redistribution of wealth from the middle class to the super-elite, and government support of white collar criminals).

By working hand-in-glove with giant corporations to defraud us into paying for a lower quality of life, the government is trampling our basic rights as human beings.
Tenth Amendment

The 10th Amendment provides that powers not specifically given to the Federal government are reserved to the states or individual:

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Two of the central principles of America’s Founding Fathers are:

(1) The government is created and empowered with the consent of the people



and



(2) Separation of powers

Today, most Americans believe that the government is threatening – rather than protecting – freedom. We’ve become more afraid of our government than of terrorists, and believe that the government is no longer acting with the “consent of the governed“.

And the federal government is trampling the separation of powers by stepping on the toes of the states and the people. For example, former head S&L prosecutor Bill Black – now a professor of law and economics – notes:

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York and the resident examiners and regional staff of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency [both] competed to weaken federal regulation and aggressively used the preemption doctrine to try to prevent state investigations of and actions against fraudulent mortgage lenders.

Indeed, the federal government is doing everything it can to stick its nose into every aspect of our lives … and act like Big Brother.

Conclusion: While a few of the liberties enshrined in the Bill of Rights still exist, the vast majority are under heavy assault.
Other Constitutional Provisions … and The Declaration of Independence

In addition to the trampling of the Bill of Rights, the government has also trashed the separation of powers enshrined in the main body of the Constitution.

The government is also engaging in activities which the Founding Fathers fought against, such as taxation without representation (here and here), cronyism, deference to central banks, etc.

As the preamble to the Declaration of Independence shows, the American government is still carrying out many of the acts the Founding Fathers found most offensive:

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures. [Background here and here]



He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power. [Background here, here, here, here and here]



***



He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation: [Background]



***



For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences [Background]



***



He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation. [Background]



***



He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us. [Background here, here and here]

[Fenix]

Greenspan: “Debt, Deficits and Entitlement Programs Are All Coming to a Head In a Few Months, All Over the World”
Submitted by George Washington on 09/09/2015 16:12 -0400

Former Fed chief Alan Greenspan told CNBC last week:

Debt, deficits and entitlement programs are all coming to a head in a few months, all over the world.

This is very interesting, given that financial luminaries such as Ray Dalio, Kenneth Rogoff, Bill Gross, Kyle Bass, BCA Research and John Mauldin think that we’re at the end of a debt supercycle.

[Fenix]

What Is Greece Planning To Do With Its Gold After The Elections?

Submitted by Secular Investor on 09/09/2015 13:46 -0400
Greece Tsipras
Source: The Independent

In Greece, all members of the press seem to be focusing on the fact prime minister Alexis Tsipras has called for new elections. That in itself is quite a ballsy move as it could either indicate Tsipras expects to get an even stronger mandate from the Greek people which – for that to happen – would have to forgive him for not even remotely listening to their vote in the July referendum.

Another possibility obviously is the fact Tsipras has had enough of it and wants to give the reigns to someone else. That’s less likely but definitely still possible considering he hasn’t really had a lot of fun during his six month tenure.

But there was another event a few weeks ago which truly caused us to raise our eyebrows. The Greek government has revoked the permits at its largest mine development project in the country as it has forbidden a Canadian company, Eldorado Gold, to continue to build its large Skouries mine as well as some processing facilities which would improve the efficiency at its other operations.

Greece Skouries

Source: mining.com

This leaves Eldorado with a very bitter taste. The company has deployed almost a billion dollar in the region to advance the Skouries project towards production and now, in the final stages of developing the project, the government is pulling the plug for what seems to be a weird reason. Greece doesn’t agree with the fact Eldorado completed the metallurgical test work in a Finnish facility, and exactly because the test work wasn’t done inside Greece, the government declared the original development contract null and void.

greece skouries adit

Source: Eldorado Gold

Let’s take a step back and look at the situation from a larger perspective instead of a company-government quarrel-perspective. The gold mining company is the largest foreign investor in Greece, and after pledging to invest $1B in the development of Greek mines, why would the Greek government try to piss them off over what seems to be a futility?

Additionally, Eldorado Gold employed in excess of 2,000 people directly and very likely created an additional 3-4,000 indirect jobs. Why would a country plagues by a sky-high unemployment rate suddenly care more about trying to get rid of a gold mining company by trying to find a nonsense-excuse instead of keeping 7,000 people at work and looking forward to a (corporate) tax inflow once the mine would be up and running?

Is it because the metal that would be mined is gold? Does the Greek government want to keep the gold in the ground until the time it needs it? It sure looks like it because it makes no sense at all to scare the country’s largest foreign investor away. Greece has a plan, but we might have to wait until after the snap elections to discover what it is.

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