Christmas is the time that we pack expectations into every package we wrap and for weeks anticipate that one, perfect Currier-Ives day.
And, of course, since any day is seldom perfect, there are varying degrees of let-down that trickle across the population.
For some people with high hopes, Christmas Day turns out to be melancholy. I realized this year, though, that there is one day of the Christmas season that never disappoints me. In fact, it is always warmer, more loving, memorable, and joyous than I expect.
So, you do not want to pay for trash disposal and/or you want to burn items on a regular basis. Here are some of the guidelines you need to keep in mind:
Know all of the rules you are supposed to be abiding by, so you know what you have to do to appear not to be breaking any.
This one is important: Remember you and everyone in your household has to have the mantra of you are “only burning leaves.”
Make sure you have at least one pile of leaves somewhere on ground for proof they need to be burned.
You cannot think about anything, not the environment, other people, or yourself.
An open letter to the mayors and councils of Peachtree City, Fayetteville, Tyrone, Brooks, and Woolsey, and to the Fayette County Board of Commissioners:
You have been or will be asked to contribute, on behalf of the taxpayers of your cities and the county, to the cost of the Fayette Visioning Initiative. I am writing to encourage you to provide that contribution.
I am responding in regards to John Whitehead’s article on “Why do local cops need battle tanks?” The article was written on a pure liberal-pacifist level.
As a retired law enforcement officer with over 21 years of experience, I can assure your readers that Whitehead’s article is purely fluff with no substance.
Many of the items such as the MRAPs that he refers to in his article are being incorporated by Special Response Teams and SWAT teams throughout the country.
I have especially enjoyed this Christmas season as part of your county government. The duties of elected office can sometimes be challenging, but the rewards of service are always worth it.
Our new 2013 Board of Commissioners concentrated on delivering our local government back to the citizens of Fayette County. We resolved to bring as many citizens into the halls of government as possible. We have had great success.
"The Fed will never end QE for good…" blasts Marc Faber, "they may do some cosmetic adjustments, but within a few years, [Fed] asset purchases will be substantially higher than they are today." There will be another weakening in the US economy, Faber warns, and "the Fed will argue it hasn't done enough and will do more… they have been irresponsible for 20 years."
Noting that investors should "not buy stocks but be in cash", the stunned CNBC anchor exclaims "How could you sit in cash when th emarket is on fire and interest rates are so low?" to which Faber blasts, "The market is not on fire, look at IBM, Cisco, and Intel – all lower than 2011; it's on fire if you are in Facebook or Twitter and not everyone owns them."
Use rallies to reduce exposure, he warns, "we will go up until it is over; and when it is over the drop will be larger than 20%"
On The Fed
"They will never end QE for good... they may do some cosmetic adjustments, but within a few years, [Fed] asset purchases will be substantially higher than they are today"
"Do not forget, the stock market and the so-called economic recovery will be in its 5th year… and at some point the economy will weaken again. The Fed will argue it hasn't done enough and will do more"
On Money Printing
If money printing can truly enrich the world, we should all be on the beach! Money printing does not create wealth but that's what the Fed thinks.
On the Fed's ability to spot bubbles,
Faber analogizes the members sat on top of a barrel of dynamite covered in gasoline and lighting a cigar…"and still not notice any danger."
"The members of the Fed have never worked a single day of their lives in business" and are blind to the real world impact of the policies.
"They have been irresponsible for at least 20 years," by creating one bubble after another and "bailing out institutions that should have failed."
On Stocks,
The S&P will not go up forever, and the happy times will not last forever; use any rally in the US markets from here to lighten up on long positions…
We have had a huge run off the lows in the US stock market, "we will go up until it is over; and when it is over the drop will be larger than 20%"
I don't think people should buy stocks – they should be in cash.
On Going To Cash,
The most-hated asset at the present time is cash
The stunned anchor exclaims "How could you sit in cash when th emarket is on fire and interest rates are so low?" to which Faber blasts,
"The market is not on fire, look at IBM, Cisco, and Intel – all lower than 2011; it's on fire if you are in Facebook or Twitter and not everyone owns them."
On the US economy,
In the US, the numbers may look better – but look at who publishes the numbers… globally the numbers have actually deteriorated.
On the Global Economy,
The global economy will not be strengthening next year, it will be weakening as all the Asian economies are slowing
On Gold and Gold Stocks,
Of all the asset claases that I look at, the most depressed is precious metals (and precious metals equities).
If money printing continues, which he sees as likely around the world as they "continue their insane policies", these will benefit the most.
via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/4xwXEuM-nRo/story01.htm Tyler Durden
"The Fed will never end QE for good…" blasts Marc Faber, "they may do some cosmetic adjustments, but within a few years, [Fed] asset purchases will be substantially higher than they are today." There will be another weakening in the US economy, Faber warns, and "the Fed will argue it hasn't done enough and will do more… they have been irresponsible for 20 years."
Noting that investors should "not buy stocks but be in cash", the stunned CNBC anchor exclaims "How could you sit in cash when th emarket is on fire and interest rates are so low?" to which Faber blasts, "The market is not on fire, look at IBM, Cisco, and Intel – all lower than 2011; it's on fire if you are in Facebook or Twitter and not everyone owns them."
Use rallies to reduce exposure, he warns, "we will go up until it is over; and when it is over the drop will be larger than 20%"
On The Fed
"They will never end QE for good... they may do some cosmetic adjustments, but within a few years, [Fed] asset purchases will be substantially higher than they are today"
"Do not forget, the stock market and the so-called economic recovery will be in its 5th year… and at some point the economy will weaken again. The Fed will argue it hasn't done enough and will do more"
On Money Printing
If money printing can truly enrich the world, we should all be on the beach! Money printing does not create wealth but that's what the Fed thinks.
On the Fed's ability to spot bubbles,
Faber analogizes the members sat on top of a barrel of dynamite covered in gasoline and lighting a cigar…"and still not notice any danger."
"The members of the Fed have never worked a single day of their lives in business" and are blind to the real world impact of the policies.
"They have been irresponsible for at least 20 years," by creating one bubble after another and "bailing out institutions that should have failed."
On Stocks,
The S&P will not go up forever, and the happy times will not last forever; use any rally in the US markets from here to lighten up on long positions…
We have had a huge run off the lows in the US stock market, "we will go up until it is over; and when it is over the drop will be larger than 20%"
I don't think people should buy stocks – they should be in cash.
On Going To Cash,
The most-hated asset at the present time is cash
The stunned anchor exclaims "How could you sit in cash when th emarket is on fire and interest rates are so low?" to which Faber blasts,
"The market is not on fire, look at IBM, Cisco, and Intel – all lower than 2011; it's on fire if you are in Facebook or Twitter and not everyone owns them."
On the US economy,
In the US, the numbers may look better – but look at who publishes the numbers… globally the numbers have actually deteriorated.
On the Global Economy,
The global economy will not be strengthening next year, it will be weakening as all the Asian economies are slowing
On Gold and Gold Stocks,
Of all the asset claases that I look at, the most depressed is precious metals (and precious metals equities).
If money printing continues, which he sees as likely around the world as they "continue their insane policies", these will benefit the most.
via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/4xwXEuM-nRo/story01.htm Tyler Durden
Charles Everett “Chuck” Groover, 57, passed away at his home in Fayetteville, Ga. on Thursday, December 12, 2013.
He is survived by his mother, DeLane Spradlin Groover, his son, David Gregory Groover, brother, Gregory Mark, and brother, Kenneth David and his wife, Venus; nieces Ashley Groover Houchins and husband, Clint and Nicole Groover Francis and husband Scott as well as numerous cousins and friends. Chuck was preceded in death by his father Roy Martin Groover.
While this morning we were re-assured by the government’s statistics that there is no inflation (or deflation); implicitly enabling the Fed’s extreme monetary policy to continue with no immediate consequence, it would appear there is an oddly synchronized rise in the price of something critical to day-to-day ‘coping’ for many – alcohol prices. Spurious correlation or unintended consequence? Cost-push or demand-pull?
(h/t @Not_Jim_Cramer)
Seems like it might be time for prohibition once again?
via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/dGFp58Ph3cw/story01.htm Tyler Durden
The Advocate, a national
LGBT-interest magazine, followed Time‘s lead and named Pope
Francis as their “Person of the Year.” Although the pontiff’s
popular appeal has snowballed this year, the decision and its
reasoning still come as surprises.
Editorial Director Lucas Grindley explains
the magazine’s pick. He writes that we shouldn’t “underestimate any
pope’s capacity for persuading hearts and minds in opening to LGBT
people, and not only in the U.S. but globally.” He also details the
compassion Francis has demonstrated to individuals in the community
and in dialogue with LGBT groups.
Grindley suggests that Francis is “all the more daring” and
deserving because he has allegedly reversed the trend of past
popes. But, has he really? And, should that warrant him the
honorific title?
The Advocate contrasts Francis with Pope Emeritus
Benedict XVI, asserting that the latter was homophobic. This is the
same Benedict who
said, “It is deplorable that homosexual persons have been and
are the object of violent malice in speech or in action. Such
treatment deserves condemnation from the church’s pastors wherever
it occurs.” The emeritus pope’s statement was not
an isolated incident.
Oddly, but to Grindley’s credit, he doesn’t overlook the fact
that Francis, like Benedict and the
authoritative texts of the Catholic Church, has for religious
reasons in no way endorsed gay marriage. Grindley simply banks on
his hope that this will change, as if the views of a foreign
religious leader ought to have any impact on the democratic process
in the United States.
Pope Francis, who has
stated his commitment to promoting the dignity of “every man
and woman” regardless of their identity, is not necessarily a bad
pick on The Advocate‘s part. However, Grindley’s decision
to pick this pope – for ostensibly being different than
the last man to hold his role – is a shaky argument. The situation
recalls President Barack Obama’s reception of a Nobel Peace Prize
essentially for not being former-President George W. Bush.
Spiritual and social understanding are important, but it may
have made more sense had the magazine picked those who demonstrably
and favorably affected U.S. law for the LGBT community. Grindley
does dedicate deserved time to explaining the merits of those
involved in striking down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)
earlier this year. He lauds:
Edie Windsor… is a hero to LGBT Americans for taking the final
punch in the fight against the discriminatory Defense of Marriage
Act, and section 3 is no more.
[…]
Also at the Supreme Court that day, for example, were the four
plaintiffs in the related Proposition 8 case from California, and
they should be lauded. Or, any of their lawyers… Then there’s
attorney Roberta Kaplan, one of us, who eloquently refuted Chief
Justice John Roberts when he suggested times have changed and LGBT
people are no longer an oppressed minority.
Yet, that is apparently not enough to warrant “Person of the
Year” for any of them. The Advocate‘s choice can be seen
as goodwill extended from the LGBT community to the Catholic
community, an optimistic response to Francis’ own efforts. But,
that is difficult to do while pretending Francis is an advocate for
anything different than his predecessor, and sidelining the
America’s own LGBT advocates who triumphed over considerable legal
burdens this year.
from Hit & Run http://reason.com/blog/2013/12/17/gay-rights-magazine-names-pope-person-of
via IFTTT
The Advocate, a national