OMG, This Guy Should Run for President!

I am talking about Hoyt Barber, the guy who wrote the Secrets of Swiss Banking book that I'm reading. As I mentioned in a previous post, this was written pre-Lehman. So you might be wondering what value there is in reading a book that's pre-Lehman. But I think it's important not to tie oneself to just one way of thinking. Lehman changed the world and how people feel about security, money, consumerism, etc. It will leave an imprint on our psyche for years to come and books written after Lehman will reflect these biases. Plus, this guy happened to hit the nail right on the head with a lot of topics. It's pointless to only listen to the perma-bears who were right about the crisis or only wear your rose-coloured glasses, isn't it.

Anyway, I found myself wanting to bookmark every other page so far and some of his best lines include...

On Bernanke (this one's so brilliant I wish I had said it): "Well, he knows the truth on the real inflation numbers that he's not sharing with the public."

On the US political landscape (written even before the election): "The next stop: socialism. The next president will be pressing for social changes, but with these ideas come high price tags, not unlike war."

... "and today, the United Nations has aspirations of becoming the Global Internal Revenue Service."


I didn't yet get to the muscular part just yet, but already, I'm feeling an affinity to the capitalistic notions detailed in this book. It made me wonder: why are we giving away one third of our salary to sponsor a government that is able to accomplish so little on such a large budget? We have to vote the pork bellies out of office and trade them for some Fair Weather Futures, BFFs!

Anyway, again, because I ramble... I had some more major fun with CENX. Mind you, I bought at $10.25 and we closed the day at $14.41, which is a 40.58% gross paper profit. I've been watching the $14-16 range for ages and now, my initial target has finally been touched. Shanghai rallied +1.23% today, bringing along many commodities stocks for the ride. Major miners like RTP and BHP seem to be testing their 52WHs now. Both had hit rock-bottom 52WLs only about four to five months back. It's another very critical moment for the market. Are we going to see oil break above $85 and even head towards $90?

There's so much speculation and anticipation about whether and how much Bernanke will QE2 our pain. It rather depends on how much he swept the street himself, doesn't it? I am going to watch the forex market more carefully now. A push higher in stock markets with no followthrough on risk currencies should mean we should move closer to the panic button.

To paraphrase Hoyt Barber: "Well, he knows the truth on the real... numbers that he's not sharing with the public."

Report Card:

+1.47% on the SBA
+0.56% on the Roth IRA


In just a few more days, my debt will self-destruct and my PDO will be officially over. I pressed the right button today and made the final payment to my student loan, which will take another few days to post. Since I was Swiss in a previous lifetime, I'm waiting for the amount to post on my account. Twelve years of carrying this debt around and finally, I am at the precipice of financial freedom. When I obliterate the rest of my debt, I'll be on here singing another happy song to my favourite Professors of Finance.