Zeev's Turnips Patch-No Politics (ZEEV)

[lee kramer]

Right Gent. No, wrong. Well, maybe.

[lee kramer]

I must needs disagree brightness. Real-time cameras in phone poles, high trees, [I once saw a bright chimp clicking away sitting on a high branch munching on a loverly bunch of bananas, intersections, millions walking around with cell phones clicking, clicking, clicking.

You can't hardly scratch nose, crotch, kneecap or toochas without the world watching and laughing.

[lee kramer]

Yea Belgie, Suzy and I did the "Dance of Joy" when the Salt man took his mighty cut, sending the pup into next week with our rauc whooping and hollering.

We became fans of the Salt Man last year when we saw his offensive and defensive abilities.

Did you know that the poor fellow has the most syllables, 6, to his last name than any other ballplayer? Hence "Salty" which would have been tagged on him anyway.

[MiamiGent]

Or should it have been Celine- these question plague me !

[MiamiGent]

Hey guys, ladies, let me know-did I make the right choice last week selecting Heather Hedley over Sarah Brightman in their duets with the great Andrea Bochelli. I was totally enchanted with Sarah Brightman and her warm rapport with Andrea but I just felt Heather sublimated her ego to blend so well with Andrea- in sports parlance, she was a total team player, a Boston Celtic!

Compare:

Let me know- did I get it right, or wrong.

MG

[MiamiGent]

Wall Street Week Ahead: Stimulus moves, profits to be focus
BY Reuters Equity 7:01 PM ET 07/06/2012
By Rodrigo Campos

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street has been running in circles for the past two months, and the pattern may continue despite the upcoming start of the earnings season.

Quarterly report cards from blue-chips Alcoa and JPMorgan next week could fade into the background as traders jockey for position before key data from China and more central bank headlines next week.

After three major central banks eased monetary policy this week, investors will comb through the minutes of the latest Federal Reserve policy meeting, which will be released on Wednesday, to see what officials said about a further round of asset purchases.

U.S. stocks face headwinds from a slowing global economy. Europe's debt crisis has drawn much of the attention, but little clarity has emerged about how the euro zone's debt and banking problems will be fixed despite numerous meetings.

The uncertainty has left the market in the hands of traders, who look for opportunities for quick returns, while investors, who are in the market for the long haul, watch from the sidelines.

The S&P 500 flirted with going negative for the year shortly before posting its best week since December. The benchmark index is less than 0.1 percent above where it was two months ago.

"Traders are happy going in and out of the market within a range, but for the average investor it's a market in which the path is still unclear," said Quincy Krosby, market strategist at Prudential Financial in Newark, New Jersey.

On Friday, the S&P 500 closed down 0.55 percent for the week. The index has posted four weeks of gains and four of losses in the last eight.

CENTRAL BANKS TO THE RESCUE?

Weak U.S. labor market data on Friday raised the chances in favor of the Fed launching a new round of monetary stimulus to boost growth, according to a Reuters poll.

The Fed's minutes midweek will be followed Thursday by the Japanese central bank's views on the health of its economy after a two-day meeting.

"If we do see additional asset purchases from the Bank of Japan that would depreciate the yen and would be a short-term positive for global equities," said Brian Jacobsen, chief portfolio strategist at Wells Fargo Funds Management in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin.

The recent central bank actions are seen as precautionary moves as the global economy stalls. Next week's gross domestic product data out of China will help give the market important clues about the world's second-biggest economy.

"Some of the negative news is built in, and I'm anticipating a positive surprise coming out of China," Jacobsen said.

Economists expect China to report year-on-year GDP growth of 7.6 percent, compared to an 8.1 percent yearly gain in the first quarter.

Other Chinese data next week include inflation, loan growth, trade balance and retail sales.

Europe remains on traders' minds despite an agreement last week that opens the door for troubled banks to receive rescue funds. However, Italian and Spanish borrowing costs have resumed their rise in a bearish sign for markets.

Testimony by ECB President Mario Draghi to Europe's parliament on Monday will be followed by a meeting of euro zone finance ministers.

EARNINGS, OUTLOOKS ... AND A BIG TRADING LOSS

Aluminum company Alcoa reports second-quarter results on Monday. Alcoa surprised Wall Street last quarter with a positive outlook, but the global slowdown could make it harder for the aluminum maker to keep its bullish stance.

JPMorgan Chase & Co will also report earnings next week, with investors eager to know how big the bank's losses will be following a botched trade. The initial estimated loss at the bank was $2 billion but later reports indicated it could balloon to more than four times that.

"The idea is that analysts have been marking down not only earnings estimates but revenue estimates, and the reason is because of weakness in Europe, which is spilling over to weakness in global operations for many companies," said Brian Gendreau, market strategist with Cetera Financial Group in Gainesville, Florida.

The U.S. economic calendar for next week includes import prices and trade, plus producer prices and the preliminary reading on July consumer sentiment from the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan surveys.

(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos, additional reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch; Editing by Kenneth Barry)

[skono3]

In California there are a few rackets that are NEAR 80-90% illegal alien labor in isolated markets (regions) but certainly not statewide and certainly not anything resembling a SKILLED construction trade. I think you are picking from a very unrepresentative sample of tradesmen and projecting your personal experience well beyond the narrow scope from which your data is drawn.

Here in Mexifornia esidential landscaping, roofing those trades have the highest percentage of illegals-------has to be VERY small contractors though as the paperwork to shield the parent firms requires some sophistication. So they just can't be safe for long competing on larger jobs unless they have "protection" from some corrupt politicians or union bosses.

Outside construction there's small manufacturing like cabinetry, upholstery shops, car washes, transient agricultural labor (picking cotton) domestic help (The Nanny and the cleaning lady)------pretty much saturated and overwhelmed with illegal aliens but I seriously doubt we're talking 80-90% statewide.

All of these jobs still have many, MANY Americans beat down by the low wages, lack of respect, lack of benefits and TOTAL lack of bargaining power in their labor market due to the COUNTLESS MILLIONS of invaders from Asia, Latin America, Eastern Europe and whatevers left from there. But the harsh reality is they don't have the aptitude, education, initiative or resources to up and move away to better ground or move up the ladder economically to more competitive job opportunities. America ABANDONS these folks legally and culturally when we tell them------MILLIONS AND MILLIONS of them that they are doing work that American's wont do. Honestly pantmaker this horse shit rhetoric boils my blood.

None of the principles of fair, honest, quality competition apply when the referee is blind, crippled and crazy------meaning he's a political appointee.

[Belgie24]

OT Lee Kramer's head just hit the living room ceiling, when Salty jacked that 3 run homer to tie it at 5-5 in the bottom of the 1st against the Yanks.

Seek medical attention immediately, Lee. Probably a lot more to come with 26 or more innings to go! LOL

Should be a great weekend for all concerned.

[lee kramer]

Make it a great weekend all you little Zeevers out there. Plugger, stay out of the sand traps. Sox-Yankees, three games starting tonight.

[lee kramer]

Nq's got to just beyond 2610. Time to go but that was the trade.

[MiamiGent]

Most Actives..



Symbol Price Change Volume

SPY -1.49 (-1.09%) 104.1M

BAC -0.16 (-1.98%) 86.3M

GE -0.34 (-1.65%) 41.4M

RIMM +0.38 (+4.94%) 38.1M

EEM -0.74 (-1.86%) 34.6M

XLF -0.11 (-0.75%) 33.3M

NOK -0.09 (-4.46%) 31.4M

QQQ -1.05 (-1.61%) 31.1M

ARNA -0.23 (-2.03%) 31.0M

MSFT -0.58 (-1.89%) 28.0M

[lee kramer]

Nq's 2707.25; may want to take half here, enter stop, smile.

[lee kramer]

Nq's 2604.50 last.

[lee kramer]

Nq's are talking to me, [yea, charts often talk] they're saying "buy me boobeleh, I look higher."

[lee kramer]

Nq 2603 could get you 2610; it's a trade.

[basserdan]

Taibbi: Talking LIBOR Banking Scandal with Eliot Spitzer



By Matt Taibbi
POSTED: July 6, 2:09 PM ET

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/blogs/taibblog/talking-wall-street-corruption-libor-scandal-with-eliot-spitzer-20120706

[lee kramer]

And I spy a bit of volume coming in. We'll see.

[lee kramer]

Nq's just under 2601 now; doesn't have to happen, but I got a "feel."

[zab]

They both have good jobs, bought a modest home, no children, just pets, enjoy the ocean and the mountains, I could just go on, besides there mild weather of 70 degrees is envious.

Right now we are over 100 degrees agin, and we get wicked wind storms of late, had one last night, lost another tree, came real close to the house. Getting tired of the heat and bad storms, this place never had this kind of heat, or tornadoes, now it seems we are getting them all the time.

[lee kramer]

Nq's, if you see 2603 mit some volume you might want to play.

[borusa]

Portland is great, son, DL and grand daughter there. I am up the road about 400 mi. Spokane.

[lee kramer]

Watch dem futures.

[lee kramer]

Like the fellow said, "There's always another girl coming 'round the corner."{

[tinner]

You must be dying with all these moves lately.

[lee kramer]

ARNA comes to mind.

[lee kramer]

Also zab, a stock you like that's eased off may take a last hour run.

[lee kramer]

No tinner, the broker is without me. Should be ready to go Tuesday.

[tinner]

Are you still without a broker?

[zab]

Hopefully someone will step into buying this market, oops, maybe some machine might get turned the other way, at least for a few minutes, today has been so one-sided.

[lee kramer]

Rigged? Sure. But I see a nice chance for a long side futures trade.

[zab]

So true, think I will to keep parts of that and put them up on one of my walls to read each day.

Besides you are describing my son, all he does is work to support his two children, I would say more, but he screwed up his own life and for the past 10 years has been barely keeping his head above water.

As opposed to my daughter, she married better, and between the two of them are living a charmed life in Portland, Oregon.

Life is about choices, and people have to live with them, but there is nothing wrong in trying to educate them into making better ones.

As for economics, it is true that there are winners and losers, but many times the game is rigged. As for me I might have the time to trade, as for the skill, its more of a matter of a little luck.

Some days it just pays to step aside and watch the game from a distance, clears the view.

As for not getting out here alive, this is so very true, but it sure would be nice to know that I have left a few marks along the way.

[zab]

Just wondering what they will do in the market these next 90 minutes, everything feels so rigged.

[borusa]

Zab, you have the time and expertise to trade. It gives you an advantage over someone without the time and skill etc.

And that is what economics is, competition. Some win and some lose.

Longevity can be the luck of the draw or life choices. But, some people don't have good choices, so maybe everything is hanging by luck.

Some people are uncompromising some are easy. Some people sell themselves into bondage of sex, drugs, upmanship, money etc.

There is one equalizer, no one get out of here alive.

[lee kramer]

A buy-atop, futures, ABOVE, the market might do you well.

[zab]

USG still trying to move ahead in this market. Watching this action today, such BS on a job's report that was still positive. The economy is far from good, but its not falling off a cliff either, besides where else are you going to put money nowadays.

[zab]

SBGI- will probably not be a great mover, but its posting a NDH, and there has been some insider buying of late.

[zab]

MAS trying to hold $ 14.00

LPX also has been well of late.

[MiamiGent]

% Losers



Symbol Price Change Volume

INFA -13.07 (-30.14%) 15.6M

SCMP -1.80 (-25.90%) 0.3M

PFBC -2.48 (-17.60%) 71,239

NAV -4.36 (-15.14%) 3.8M

APKT -2.76 (-15.00%) 5.7M

ENMD -0.33 (-13.31%) 48,072

QLIK -2.58 (-12.69%) 2.5M

MSTR -16.34 (-12.11%) 0.2M

ALXA -0.55 (-11.65%) 0.8M

TDC -7.46 (-10.27%) 2.6M

[zab]

WTI, NBR, and PTEN are trying some.

[zab]

MMR, SMBL and ARNA acting well today, despite this downdraft.

As for this afternoon's save, it might happen, but it might also be shortlived.

KBH chart getting better, IMHO.

Selected stocks still hanging in there, but with each downdraft, the list is getting smaller.

[lee kramer]

This was in 1917 and Zeppo invented a great lighter, 'cept he couldn't spell too good.

[brightness]

IMHO, 2:22 miracle on the way, as Zeev would say.

Note: not a trading advice, just a guess. It's a shortened holiday week.

[lee kramer]

Futures: Lower lows, lower highs. Patience boobelehs.

[Newly2b]

Thanks. I25 all the way. Colorado is beautiful.

Newly

[zztops]

Hey, west-- Some big pharma folks need to go to jail and another part of health care reform will be diet training in our schools. Not much we can do about our overweight adults but we must educate the next generation.

The metrics of US diabetes demand that be part of US health care reform.

50 % of US adults now pre-diabet-- or diabetic, 35 % of ouir kids the same. 10,000 boomers a day going on Medicare, $20,000 per year to treat a diabetic....

How much more of this can US society stand?

See you guys later-- off the Asheville and the blue ridge parkway.

[lee kramer]

Have to go out for 1 1/2 hours. You gonna miss me? Plugger won;t.

[Montrose51]

Newly,

If you come up the way I think you will, you'll be passing through Longmont, CO (my current hometown) on the way to RMNP. So close! :)

Hope you have a fine visit to the park.

Montrose

[zztops]

Exactly, Big Pharma steals 15 B and gets a fine of 3 B. Pretty good biz model.

And we catch some poor slob holding 6 joints and he may do 2 years.

How much more of this can US society stand?

[Newly2b]

Yes, it was raining in Mesa Verde, but now at Great Sand Dunes it is sunny again, despite a lot of lightening and thunder last night.

Off tomorrow to Rocky Mountain Natl Park. I've heard it fills up quickly and have been trying to make reservations with no luck, so I'll try to camp nearby and get there early enough to get a spot.

Yes the rain is helping with the fires. The Marcos fire is now, I believe, fully contained. I have to go through Colorado Springs, and will hate seeing the devastation there. I remember seeing fire-scarred lands in Yellowstone a few years ago and thinking they had had a recent fire. It turned out that fire was ten or twelve years ago, and the land had still not recovered. Sad.

Newly

[Alex G]

How Not to Get Big Pharma to Change Its Ways
http://robertreich.org/post/26568286162
Thursday, July 5, 2012

Earlier this week the Justice Department announced a $3 billion settlement of criminal and civil charges against pharma giant GlaxoSmithKline — the largest pharmaceutical settlement in history — for improper marketing prescription drugs in the late 1990s to the mid-2000s.

The charges are deadly serious. Among other things, Glaxo was charged with promoting to kids under 18 an antidepressant approved only for adults; pushing two other antidepressants for unapproved purposes, including remedying sexual dysfunction; and, to further boost sales of prescription drugs, showering doctors with gifts, consulting contracts, speaking fees, even tickets to sporting events.

$3 billion may sound like a lot of money, but during these years Glaxo made $27.5 billion on these three antidepressants alone, according to IMS Health, a data research firm — so the penalty could almost be considered a cost of doing business.

Besides, to the extent the penalty affects Glaxo’s profits and its share price, the wrong people will be feeling the financial pain. Most of today’s Glaxo shareholders bought into the company after the illegal profits were already built into the prices they paid for their shares.

Not a single executive has been charged — even though some charges against the company are criminal. Glaxo’s current CEO came on board after all this happened. Glaxo has agreed to reclaim the bonuses of any executives who engaged in or supervised illegal behavior, but the company hasn’t officially admitted to any wrongdoing – and without legal charges against any of executive it’s impossible to know whether Glaxo will follow through.

The Glaxo case is the latest and biggest in a series of Justice Department prosecutions of Big Pharma for illegal marketing prescription drugs. In May, Abbott Laboratories settled for $1.6 billion over its wrongful marketing of an antipsychotic. And an agreement with Johnson & Johnson is said to be imminent over its marketing of another antipsychotic, which could result in a fine of as much as $2 billion.

The Department says the prosecutions are well worth the effort. By one estimate it’s recovered more than $15 for every $1 it’s spent.

But what’s the point if the fines are small relative to the profits, if the wrong people are feeling the financial pinch, and if no executive is held accountable?

The only way to get big companies like these to change their behavior is to make the individuals responsible feel the heat.

An even more basic issue is why the advertising and marketing of prescription drugs is allowed at all, when consumers can’t buy them and shouldn’t be influencing doctor’s decisions anyway. Before 1997, the Food and Drug Administration banned such advertising on TV and radio. That ban should be resurrected.

Finally, there’s no good reason why doctors should be allowed to accept any perks at all from companies whose drugs they write prescriptions for. It’s an inherent conflict of interest. Codes of ethics that are supposed to limit such gifts obviously don’t work. All perks should be banned, and doctors that accept them should be subject to potential loss of their license to practice.