Where Are We Going?

"My favorite poet is Aeschylus, who once said:   'And even in our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart, until in our own despair, almost against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God.'

What we need in the United States is not division. What we need in the United States is not hatred. What we need in the United States is not violence and lawlessness, but love and wisdom and compassion toward one another, a feeling of justice to those who still suffer in our country."

Robert F. Kennedy

It is not so much where are you going Lord, but rather, where are we as a people choosing to go.  At the moment it appears to be on a darker path, led by fury and passions as old as Babylon and evil as sin.   It is an old story. Nevertheless, let us not despair.

Gold has broken out and is holding its level above the high set in the aftermath of the Trump election upset. Silver is holding its level on the 18 handle.

Now gold seems to be consolidating, most likely for the attempt to push higher to take on the intermediate highs and resistance around 1370-1380. More pullbacks to test the breakout are not unexpected.

As you know, myself and others who have done some impressive investigation suspect that the 'free float' of gold in NY and London has become dreadfully thin, thanks to the long campaign to suppress the gold price on the world markets using the paper leverage on the Comex. Physical gold has been flowing to Asia for some time now, in excess of new production.

Why would anyone wish to manipulate the price of gold and silver? On the simplest level it is a way for the financiers to make money. They worship only themselves and their god Mammon. How can anyone suggest that market manipulation is not pervasive in our financial markets across a wide range of instruments? How many scandals and wristslaps does it take to convince someone?

But secondarily, gold and silver stand as pillars of value, at a time when shaping policy and printing money to benefit a corrupt elite of cronies is the fashion. As a direct result the organic growth of the economy continues to falter thanks to policy errors and a rapacious moneyed class. The Fed and the Bank of England are creatures of the banking system, and have failed miserable in their roles of public servants and sound regulators, which has been a false and almost farcical claim for many years now. The Bankers and their politicians have done nothing to benefit anyone but themselves.

If and when this latest 'gold pool' breaks, as they all must do at some time, we can expect the price of gold to spike higher in a sustained rally as the market seeks to reassert a more realistic clearing price. The rally will be driven by those who realize that the jig is up, and they must scramble to deleverage and cover.

We may experience a severe price test, especially for silver, if the equity market suffers a major selloff. I would most likely sit back and wait for it to find its level, and then come in and buy some more metal in my trading account. Unless the government takes action against them, the metals look ready to perform their traditional roles as safe havens.

"I want to end with the idea that the [unregulated] market is capable of resolving all of our social conflict, fairly and justly. That is the great idea of the 1990's. And we all know now what a crock that is.   I think what we need in order to restore some kind of sense of fairness is not the final triumph of markets over the body and soul of humanity, but something that confronts markets, and that refuses to think of itself as a brand."

Thomas Frank

The moneyed class and financiers may yet embrace their traditional penchant for fascism. They have done so, even in our exceptional empire, many more times that we might care to admit. They will hold their privileges with increasing self-righteousness, even at the expense of their own downfall.

I am not yet myself as you might expect.   But I will be back more regularly in a few weeks.

Remember to pray for the people affected by the hurricanes.  And not only prayer, but actions as well.

Have a pleasant weekend.

Epub: Quo Vadis: A Narrative of the Time of Nero by Henryk Sienkiewicz

Stocks and Precious Metals Charts - Just Charts

Stocks and Precious Metals Charts - Just Charts

I am not actively posting yet, and while I am reading emails, I am not answering them for the most part.

I know you will understand.  I am a bit numb, and distracted by all the things that need attention.

Thank you very much for the kind words and prayers.

The breakout in gold did a nice intraday retest of 1300.

The NDX has struck a new all time high.   Oh, well done.

See you in a week or two.

La Belle Aurore - We'll Always Have Paris

Here's looking at you, kid.

Requiem for Mary

Here are the readings for Mary's church service.

"The souls of the virtuous are in the hands of God,
no torment shall ever touch them.
In the eyes of the unbelieving they appeared to die,
their going looked like a tragedy,
their leaving us, like a desolation;
but they are at peace.
If they experienced hardship as the worldly see it,
their hope was rich with eternal life;
slight was their affliction, but great their blessing will be.

God has put them to the test
and proven them worthy to be with him;
he has tested them like gold in a furnace,
and accepted them as a sacred offering.
They who trust in him will understand the truth,
those who are faithful will live with him forever, in love;
for grace and mercy await those whom he has chosen."

Wisdom 3:1-6, 9


"Show me your ways, O Lord, and teach me your paths.  Lead me in your truth, and teach me: for you are the God of my salvation; and I wait for you all the day.  Remember, O Lord, your tender mercies and loving kindness, as they have ever been of old."

Psalm 25:4-6


"Rejoice in the Lord always; and again I will say, rejoice;  show patience and consideration to all, for the Lord is always near.   Let nothing make you anxious; but with prayer, and by supplication, and with thanksgiving, let your needs be made known unto God; and the peace of the Lord, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds, in Christ Jesus."

Philippians 4:4-7


"But Mary treasured up all these things, and pondered them in her heart."

Luke 2:19

This recollection from her close friend Angie sums her all up:

"My favorite memory of Mary, which I will never forget, is when we were at the Bernardsville pool sitting in the chairs on the side of the baby pool. Stella was about 3. She was the only one in the pool. She kind of skipped across the pool with her back to us and had her arms kind of loose going up and down slowly in the water, seeming to be really happy.  Mary looked at me and smiled and said 'it makes it all worth it, doesn't it?'"

“What we would like to do is change the world— make it a little simpler for people to feed, clothe, and shelter themselves as God intended them to do.   And, by fighting for better conditions, by crying out unceasingly for the rights of the workers, the poor, of the destitute— the rights of the worthy and the unworthy poor, in other words— we can, to a certain extent, change the world; we can work for the oasis, the little cell of joy and peace in a harried world.   We can throw our pebble in the pond and be confident that its ever widening circle will reach around the world."

Dorothy Day, The Long Loneliness


“We are slow to master the great truth that even now Christ is, as it were, walking among us, and by His hand, or eye, or voice, bidding us to follow Him.   We do not understand that His call is a thing that takes place now.   We think it took place in the Apostles' days, but we do not believe in it; we do not look for it in our own case."

John Henry Newman, Divine Calls


"Even in a time of elephantine vanity and greed, one never has to look far to see the campfires of gentle people.  Lacking any other purpose in life, it would be good enough to live for their sake."

Garrison Keillor, The Prairie Home Companion

Every good thing I have ever had in my life came from her.

Need little - Want less - Love more.