[The-Shoveler]

Hmm, possible, maybe to give the illusion of a free market ?
Could be.

[The-Shoveler]

Watching this unfold is like watching that dumb and dumber movie.

I doubt it will have much effect for our markets at this point, Ben and his buddies in Japan have their targets for the markets and I think they really do have the ability to hit them.

They cannot afford not to.

I think that is key IMO.

[The-Shoveler]

I basically feel the same way about the Bay area as I do CV,

Just glad I don’t feel compelled to live there.

Good luck..

[The-Shoveler]

I have come to the conclusion that I am definitely not smart enough to invest in the stock market.

If I see a big decline (30-40%) maybe I will move from the money market in the 401K and IRA back into the S&P 500.

Other than that I am done with stocks (and especially money and fund managers).

[The-Shoveler]

[quote=paramount]Makes one wonder: Are these markets (house/stock) completely engineered?[/quote]
+1
Just look at what japan is doing and realize they learned from us.

They are just being a lot more transparent about it.

The real talent is “how to read the Gov tea leaves”

[The-Shoveler]

[quote=bearishgurl][quote=livinincali]How do you propose to reduce wealth inequality when consumer choices drive the wealth inequality in the first place. Every day a consumer goes to Walmart to buy groceries instead of the local grocery it increases the wealth inequality. Every time a consumer goes out and buys the latest and greatest iPhone rather than keeping the one they have increases the wealth inequality. Consumers making choice to consume and to go in debt to consume rather than save increases the wealth inequality. Every time you put more money into your 401K it makes Wall Street a little more wealthy.

What is wealthy? Taking a little bit from a lot of people. There’s plenty of stupid consumers that voluntarily give away a little bit of their productivity everyday.[/quote]

livinincali, I agree that it is often people who make themselves “poor” by their personal decisions on consumption.

I have commissary privileges so don’t shop at WalMart but I DO know that what food it carries is quite a bit cheaper than the Big 3 in SoCal, that is … Vons, Ralphs and Albertsons.

I can also see why a lot of people from all walks of life shop at 99 cent stores.

I prefer certain brands of food and household items and these brands can’t usually be found at 99 cent stores.

I think a lot of people who are considered “poor” or “near poor” make the consumption decisions they do because they have entitlements to help pay for necessities. If they didn’t, they likely wouldn’t be such heavy consumers.[/quote]

Well we could remove minimum wage completely then Wal-Mart could get away with paying them maybe 3 dollars and hour, or maybe only 20 dollars a day, then they could get even more profit and still sell stuff cheaper, all the while getting the taxpayer to supplement them even more, such a deal…

[The-Shoveler]

Just my two cents, but if you made minimum wage 15.00 an hour you would not need near as much Tax money to subsidize Wal-Mart and McD’s workers.

[The-Shoveler]

I am not sure if Japan set inflation targets before.

It will be interesting when the worlds now third largest economy starts out on this new adventure of state targeted stock market index levels and inflation targets.

interesting times.

[The-Shoveler]

What a difference a year makes,
You did well on your bonds.
From year 2000 if dividends were reinvested your right it was about a 31% return, not bad

[img_assist|nid=17186|title=S&P500 total returns from 2000|desc=|link=node|align=left|width=100|height=77]

Adjusted for inflation it is about -3.5% so woohooo!!

[img_assist|nid=17187|title=Adjusted for inflation|desc=|link=node|align=left|width=100|height=77]

[The-Shoveler]

Also it is in no one’s interest to stop playing the game and most other first world countries are even further behind.

And really we can stop playing anytime we need to.
(it would be hard, but we could do it), very very few others could.

[The-Shoveler]

As long as we remain in control of what must be paid back (ie… U.S.A. dollars).,

It’s just numbers on a computer screen.

[The-Shoveler]

[quote=livinincali][quote=poorgradstudent]Seriously though, this sequester fight is truly stupid. If there’s one thing markets hate, it’s uncertainty. There’s clear evidence these constant battles are already dragging down the recovery.

Jack up taxes and slash spending, but set them to kick in in 2016 or whatever. Boom, problem solved.[/quote]

So let me get this straight we’re in 2011 and the market hates the uncertainty of the debt ceiling. I know let’s agree to cut spending at the end of 2012 in exchange for raising the debt limit, boom problem solved. Well we’re here in 2013 and opps that problem isn’t solved, let’s kick the can again. Of course you can see that this never ends unless your willing to take the cut/tax increases when it might not be the best time or wait until it gets worse and the bond market blows up.[/quote]

Seriously I don’t think the problem is solvable anyway so I vote for more can kicking.

BTW, asset deflation is the fastest way to bankrupt local Gov’s and all that entails.

[The-Shoveler]

[quote=no_such_reality][quote=bearishgurl]
Couldn’t have said it any better myself …. except for one caveat. In SD County, we already DO currently have hundreds of “affordable” residential listings within 20 miles of job centers. The areas they are situated in were “affordable” decades ago and are still “affordable” now.
[/quote]

Minor nit, with 1.1 million housing units, you don’t hundreds, you need ten’s of thousands.

Owner occupied housing vacancy in SD is 1.9%. Owner occupancy housing is 591,000 units. At a reasonable turnover rate, you need 85,000 sales a year, or just over 7000/month.[/quote]

I was going to say,
And the next 4-6 million people SD expected is to grow will fit where?

[The-Shoveler]

In SD I think you have more of a wireless/SmartPhone Bubble than anything else.

Me I think we will continue to have bubble/burst .. bubble/burst until we go back to using assets as part of the CPI (like pre-1981 — the introduction of OER and the beginning of the destruction of the middle class).

I saw something by Nouriel Roubini where he thinks we are on the verge of the biggest mother of all credit bubble yet!!
Much bigger than the last one.

I don’t know, I think watching Japan will tell us what is likely to occur here (they are launching a new experiment in economics, State controlled markets!!).

Hey, you got a market that is not increasing, no problem, just force it!!

[The-Shoveler]

[quote=UCGal]
Watch Japan, were next but not quite as extreme, see Israel in similar example from 1980-1985.

I’m confused. Are you saying that homes flyer purchased for $70k, in Carmel Valley will go back to those prices?

Even with decades of no growth, that’s not going to happen.

flyer was fortunate to be born in a time, and to purchase in a time, before the long trend upward in prices. It’s hard for folks who bought in the 90’s or later to realize just how much lower prices were back in the 80’s and earlier.[/quote]

No I am saying in the near future Japan is very likely to experience VERY high inflation, Israel in a very similar situation unable to pay its bills without extreme money printing end up with almost 1000% inflation per year for several years.

We will fair a little better as we don’t really need anyone else.

I plan to keep working, Maybe the minimum wage link to inflation the president was suggesting was to get us started?

[Author]

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