[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgRm1ISlw_A 450 300]

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I’ve had some trouble getting a post out about this Newtown, CT horror show.  You might imagine why.  I have a seven year old.  He’s an outlier, and I’ve always worried about him.  Now that seems almost ridiculous, and yet…

There’s no way you can’t fall on your knees.  In grief, in relief.  In relief.  That’s wrong, I know it, but the absolute realization that something like this can happen… that it is even possible…  makes one want to put their kids into a box until they grow up.

The pain is visceral and it’s borne of impotence.  You want to strike out, make things right.  In this way you cannot even blame the illogical left with their knee jerk proscriptions against gun ownership.  It almost makes sense, given the emotional quotient.

But one has to ask what makes any sense?  Arm the teachers? Seems extreme, and perhaps too much to ask.  But what about security personnel?  One, two..? … training will be important.  Reinforced classroom doors?  Is it worthwhile?  I guess I’d have to ask if protecting our kids is worthwhile.  How much should we spend on that?  Can we maybe move the TSA budget to that arena?

I do know there are some 250 million guns extant in the U.S., and even an absolute prohibition will not keep guns out of the hands of criminals, and crazies.  Does it make sense, then, to concentrate on keeping guns out of legal hands, instead of perhaps working to better counsel — and control — the mentally ill and dangerous?

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Shockingly, or not, I am still in love with silver and gold here.  True, AG got it’s ass kicked today, malevolently, because it purchased another mine at an egregious premium.  Their loss is your gain.  Take advantage.  But wait one day before you buy.  In the meantime, SLW and SIL are great.  As is GDXJ and GDX.

Best to you all.

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[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1jzs6dk4bs 450 300]

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Breaking away for a second to remind you to pay attention here.  We are headed into Santa Claus territory, and I don’t think it will be coincidental when we see the gold and silver elves coming out for their annual drunken bacchanal.

I am hoping that on Friday I will have moved a large amount of money from “here” unto “there,” and then will have some time to sport about with you, old time style, half-inebriated and full of fun.  Until then, GDX, GDXJ, and yes, even NUGT will be attractive in the Christmas season.  On the silver side, those of you who have cursed and gnashed your teeth about EXK can consider this the time to “make your bones,” or whatever other ethnic cliche you’d like to use.   AG is still my favorite silver dog, and SLW and SIL my core recommendations for the noobs.  That said, PAAS and MVG can be berry berry good to those of a speculative bent.

More speculative than any of those, however, is AAU and TC.  If you have 2% of your portfolio that you reserve for dice throwing at 3 AM in a dirty alley laden with crack whores and vein poppers, then those are your available plays.  Do not cry to me if you are blackjacked, but please remit 15% to the Salvation Army if you do bank coin.

Best to all of you, and hoping to spend many days of merry and bright with you in the latter part of this month…

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Depending on whose figures you credit, increasing marginal taxes on “the rich” — otherwise known as every schmuck “fortunate” enough to make more than $250,000… including you suckers who live in the Northeast U.S.  and metropolitan California, where this amount will get you a second car and maybe a third bedroom — will raise anywhere from $75 to $90 billion dollars next year.

On the other hand, next year’s budget deficit, depending on how you cost Obamacare, could amount to anywhere from $1.3 to $1.6 TRILLION and higher.   Despite their proposed tax increase delivering far less than 10%  of that proposed deficit, the Administration now seems to have little interest in bartering said tax increase for an agreement to cut spending to a degree that might provide actual deficit relief.  Of course many kind words have been uttered about a “future plan” to implement cuts, but Lord knows, we’ve seen such promises go up in smoke many times since the Reagan era, when that bait and switch was first used by the venerable Tip O’Neil.

So the question arises:  Could the Republicans be dumb enough to trample their long held principles about raising taxes in a recessionary economy, and accept a blind tax increase without defined, commensurate, and indeed exponential, cuts in spending in exchange?  Would they sell out their birthright and last bargaining chip merely to escape the glare of Ming the Merciless?

Well, I find it hard to believe, but I’ve seen some crazy stuff in the last month.   So who knows?  Maybe they will make it easy for all of us.

Perhaps in the end, the cynics are correct, and the only way out is to follow the wormhole to it’s very core, and burst out the other side at the dawn, once again.   One thing is for certain, however… “Things fall apart… the center cannot hold.”

Pax.

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PS — you who come here for an occasional discussion of PM stocks….  I really think the sell off in AUY is as much an opportunity as the sell off in RGLD  last week.  One of my favorites.  Also, I continue to like AG here.

Bless us all, every one.

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[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1U9CL8OXCQc 450 300]

 

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Tonight, I am home in the house where I grew up and counting my blessings. Today, we did our traditional “pre-Thanksgiving New York Thing,” and brought the kids in to see “A Christmas Story.”  I have to admit, I wasn’t looking forward to it, given that I’d seen the movie about 12 times since it’d come out, and thought, “how can they make this into an entertaining musical?”  Well, I should have known.  Never second-guess the song and dance guys that make up the backbone of the Broadway hit machine in New York.  Compared to the clowns in Hollywood who write for the silver screen, these guys are veritable blue chip bonds… they just do not fuck it up.

So take that as my endorsement… and for those of you who — like me — have lost a Dad at any point in the last 20 years, well… be prepared.  Bring a kleenex.

I wanted to say Thank You to all of you tonight as well.  You have been incredibly patient with me this year, and I very much appreciate it. It’s been crazy, work wise, and I hope the flow will take a respite in 2013.  In the mean time, I thank you for your queries and your correspondence.  I think you will be rewarded by the PM’s this year, as long as Mr. Obama doesn’t take the economy to Berserkiztan and leave it there…

I really like AG right now.  It’s my number one pick.  Do what you like with that, but have some tryptophan first.

 

Best to you all….

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Soon, soon I will be a plunger yet again. Morsels are looking tasty already, and I don’t think gold and silver have too much farther to go here.  There’s a lot of support for physical silver at this $31.80-ish level and I may choose to nibble there tomorrow if we get one more rip to the downside. Then stuff will be on sale like you read about.  SLW at $37?, AG at below $22? RGLD at more than 15% from recent highs? Are you kidding me? These are the times when men can be gluttonous, in a sippy-cup kind of way (small sips, gradual like).

I will have time to speak about the recent Obaminations when I’ve got ten minutes to assemble my thoughts.  Needless to say, last night was more revelation.  I think I’ve come to the reluctant conclusion that the guy is just not very bright after all.  The consistent throwing of constituency after constituency under the bus…. when will it end?  Last night, he gave up Virginia by blowing up Newport News and its naval stronghold.  Ah well, who needs those bayonets, save our own guts?

 

Maybe he’ll talk about how he hates Buckeye nuts, next? One can only hope… (for change?)

Best to you all.

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The amount of whining I’ve seen on this site recently is only rivaled by that of ESPN’s Steve Young and Trent Dilfer after last night’s hilarious game.
Suck it up, Trebeck, it’s a bull market!   Benjamin Bernanke has decreed that all asset markets should rise in honor of Grand Marshall Obama and, well, you know what they used to say to Yul Brynner in pajama pants, right? “So it is written, so it shall be done.”  And that’s it.

So get in the Unimog.  We’re gonna let Arnold drive, and roll over some bears even as the world collapses.  And don’t worry about Romney.  He’ll be fine, especially after the debates when he shows President Empty Suit what an economics degree looks like.  Maybe some of you fanboi’s might take notice as well, though I’m not holding my breath.

What do you know? One of my favorite “grandmama” stocks has broken out — Urstadt Biddle Properties (NYSE: UBA).  Why? Because they own scarce retail real estate in one of the richest areas on this earth outside of never-fail-land, Washington, D.C.  That would be Westchester, Fairfield and Putnam counties, otherwise known as the fully developed northern suburbs of New York City.  It never fails — when scare resources are chased by too many dollars, their value rises.  Just like gold, just like silver.  I love the management as well.  The eponymous octogenarian CEO and majority owner, Charles Urstadt, is an old school Dartmouth athlete, who still swims around the island of Manhattan in his spare time.  He is a pisser around the bourbon bar as well.  Go up to Greenwich and see him, why don’t you?  Buy and hold forever.

Almost all my gold and silver favorites are approaching buy levels again, and these will hold til Santa day, minimum.  I really like AUY here on the gold side.  For silver, I like AG.  A lot.

If you are going to cry about something, don’t let it be for stocks or a stupid replacement ref.  Let it be for some light that has passed from the earth.  Like the bright light of Luciano Pavarotti, the angelus.  I saw Puccini’s  Tosca last weekend and it was sublime, but the first opera I ever saw (only some six years back) was another Puccini masterwork… Turandot.  Check out this famous aria from that classic, as sung by Luciano… give it a second and you will recognize it I have no doubt.  Does it not transcend all boundaries, all tastes?

It is a blessing, there’s just no other description:

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iW1w1ryYQDw 450 300]

Best to you all.

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