'Always Look To the Bright Side of Life'

Some say we at A&G are overly negative when it comes to the global economy; that to paraphrase a Monty Python song, we don't look at 'the bright side of life'..

So we're sorry.. truly sorry.. deeply truly sorry.. really deeply truly sorry... (Its another Monty Python reference btw-- the 'Dirty Fork' skit)

So.. yes, lets try some positivity:

We are sure everything will get better with the economy now that QE3 will be implemented adding $40bil/mo to the $45bil/mo already committed to by the Fed via Operation 'Twist' 2...

"A quiet day on Wall Street turned into the worst sell-off in three months after a Federal Reserve official said he doubted the bank's effort to boost economic growth would work.  Charles Plosser, president of the Fed's Philadelphia branch, told an audience Tuesday that the Fed's effort to support the economy would likely fall short of its goals."  (AP)

And if things ever get worse with the economy, don't worry-- the Fed has unlimited options to fix everything so our lives are not altered one iota

"The latest round of extraordinary Federal Reserve stimulus is risky and leaves little room to maneuver should another crisis hit, economist Lawrence Lindsey told CNBC's "Squawk Box" on Wednesday.

Lindsey said that with the Fed purchasing at least $40 billion a month in mortgage debt through QE3, "they are buying the entire deficit." ... He added, "If this becomes the new ordinary, it's hard to imagine the Fed's maneuvering room" should another crisis hit. "  (CNBC)

Life is good..and the holiday shopping season this year is going to be just 'Crackin!' (to borrow a Welsh expression)..  Its going to be just 'Smashin!'

"Since the beginning of June, when the Europeans promised endless QE and the Fed leaked that QE3 would be coming, most commodities have had huge runs from trough to peak.  As these price increases move through the system, consumer goods prices will increase at least as much as the commodities, and just time for the Christmas inventory channel build.

So, you want to buy your wife some jewelry? Gold and silver are up almost 15% and 25%, respectively. Want to make a nice dinner for the family? Corn is up 40%, wheat is up 50%, and soybeans have risen 30%. If you care to drive anyone, anywhere, oil and gas are up 30% and 35% respectively and the basket known as the CRB index of commodities, which includes energy, grains, industrials, meats and precious metals, is up 20%."  (Yahoo! Financial)

And Europe..  Let us tell you about Europe..  Ever since Mario Draghi, head of the ECB promised the to act as a Euro-version of the Fed and buy up everyone's debt, there are just smiles abound in the Old Continent...

"Violence has erupted in Greece after an anti-government rally in Athens that drew about 50,000 people.  Riot police used tear gas and pepper spray against several hundred demonstrators near the parliament... Shopkeepers, teachers, customs workers and car mechanics were among those taking part in the march in central Athens, held during a general strike against new austerity measures."  (AP)

Yes, there's been much excitement.. um.. we mean happy excitement.. Everyone in Europe is very happy and smiling and excited over their future...

"On a recent evening, a hip-looking young woman was sorting through a stack of crates outside a fruit and vegetable store here in the working-class neighborhood of Vallecas as it shut down for the night.

At first glance, she looked as if she might be a store employee. But no. The young woman was looking through the day’s trash for her next meal. Already, she had found a dozen aging potatoes she deemed edible and loaded them onto a luggage cart parked nearby.

“When you don’t have enough money,” she said, declining to give her name, “this is what there is.” 


The woman, 33, said that she had once worked at the post office but that her unemployment benefits had run out and she was living now on 400 euros a month, about $520. She was squatting with some friends in a building that still had water and electricity, while collecting “a little of everything” from the garbage after stores closed and the streets were dark and quiet.

Such survival tactics are becoming increasingly commonplace here, with an unemployment rate over 50 percent among young people and more and more households having adults without jobs. So pervasive is the problem of scavenging that one Spanish city has resorted to installing locks on supermarket trash bins as a public health precaution."

See.. Everything is Wonderful..  Now everyone can go back to worrying about 'real' problems like when the NFL will replace those replacement refs.  Just a National Travesty --  Nudge Nudge, Say No More!!