6/2/08 - because of the unusual situations with both the bullion markets and the USA dollar exchange rate everything (11/16/2008) you should consider ALL of my posted prices to be provisional.  There may be changes in any category.  This notice will be posted on a few other pages but not all.  But this is your official notice. (Renewed 1/4/2010 - this is what low level chaos feels like)

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E. OPINIONS & NEWS

12/17/2009
1. VERY SORRY this list is so late.  Could not be prevented.  I tried to do an abbreviated list with less stuff and ended up with 1500 items.  We are getting close to a turning point in the business reorganization.  That might mean that the delays and errors may increase even more than they have.  Well, January list will be late too but then I hope to be able to gradually move back toward first of the month.
2. TURNS OUT that at least the beginning of my unworkable plan for Afghanistan (the joke was that it needed at least 300k troops) is part of the McChrystal plan, to whit, hold the cities and work out from there.  McC is special forces, there will be a lot we never find out about this campaign.  Long term cultural issues involved in this development.  I'm not sure there is a policy on Afghanistan yet, rather think not.  Anyway, a lot will have to be inferred.  Plenty of time to discuss if it actually does develop that way.
3. SO HERE is another joke: the Taliban take over everywhere though imagination fails as to exactly how.  They are essentially antitechnological, so everything falls apart under their rule and general mortality drops to 19th century levels.  Half of the humans die in a couple of decades or less.  That will solve the carbon footprint problem.  Fewer footprints.  It was pointed out to me that population is not being discussed in Copenhagen.  Strawberry shortcake but no berries, no cake, only short.  It doesn't matter if humans "cause" climate change.  The real question is what are "we" going to do about it.  That will depend on the qualities of "weness" that "we" possess.  The indications are that "we" will not demonstrate the collective intelligence necessary to deal "rationally" with the situation that perhaps is developing so therefore "we" will not deal but rather respond to it irrationally and emotionally so it will be a big mess with a suboptimum outcome, however we choose to define better and worse. (For horror show fans I can report that the "Venus scenario" that I mentioned in a private correspondence about a year ago has made it onto the media, radio to be exact, that would be NPR of course.)  When/if the situation becomes extreme and mass human dieoffs begin to occur there will be local wars of both desperation and opportunity.  Additionally, in the face of what seems to be an impossible politico-bureaucratic situation, which could be reasonably expected to deliver what might increasingly be sensed as inadequate responses, one could expect major adventurous moves by big or desperate megalomaniacs (personal and/or corporate) at world coup d'etat to force whatever course is considered proper by that person(s).  Anything is possible.
    What to do?  Stop watching TV.  Start paying attention to what's going on.  That kind of stuff.  TV.  Stop watching it.  Because I said so.
2. A bit closer to actual reality perhaps is the emerging outline of World War III, which again will be Eurasia, substantially probably leaving out South America like the last two times.  The flash point is India-Pakistan of course.  The missing pieces of the war are an intention to intervene by China and/or Russia.  If either of them decide that they want to play soldier with the Islamizers in countries not their own (you know what?  I'm going to start calling them Kharijites, which is what they are, which is people who think its OK to kill other Muslims who don't agree with them) there will be that generalized conflict with nuclear possibilities over wide regions for a long time that we've been expecting/fearing since 1945.

11/6/2009
1. RESULT OF LAST MONTH'S poll: 100% did not respond.  Unity is a wonderful thing.
2. A game plan for Afghanistan: garrison the major cities (1 year), then secure the ring road (2 years).  Then seal the eastern border (assuming Pakistan continues to softly not cooperate)  Sweep the Taliban west and drive them over the border into Iran (summer campaign if successful, years if not).  Iran would love to take care of the Taliban.  It will make them happy.
2. Iran's bomb is not for Israel.  It is for Pakistan if it goes Taliban.  It is for Arabia after the Islamic revolution there, when the king dies or something.  Purely defensive.  Only Shi'a country in the world.  Surrounded by enemies.  Israel is just a red cape to wave around.
3. Referring again to last month, someone opined that India could not be expected to behave coherently about Afghanistan because of its utter looseness in governing philosophy.  That is a good point, but are the armed forces there bearers of political influence at least as great as other great nations?  When diplomats go there they talk with people and then sometimes things happen.  It is not merely a gigantic muddle.  Another question might be do they care much about Afghanistan when they really have to do something about China?  All that water in the Himalayas.  Who gets it?
4. I JUST WANT TO THANK YOU again for putting up with the dislocations, latenesses, errors etc. that go with the reorganization of the databases, inventory, and the business in general.  We're probably halfway done.  Hope we're not doing the last half first or something.

10/11/2009
1. I WAS writing on the metaphor of an upset stomach in regard to the current economico-political world, then I thought that talking about stomachaches before I ask you to buy coins might be not so pro-business.  But then I thought: a) I'm an artist, my business is my art, and b) my clients will understand.  So I go on with it.
2. OCTOBER has been a high anxiety financial month since at least 1929.
3. GOLD probably would be higher if there was enough money around.  Gold buying in India is apparently not booming.  They are not spending their money either.  It's not happening.
4. BUT COINS are happening.  Funny about that.  We're a special breed.
4a. PROGNOSTICATION: perhaps the US $ is low because they want a low dollar to pay out all of those low interest T-bills they sold last year.  So then perhaps they will have to raise rates to keep the T-bill buyers interested next time.  So - stagflation next year.  Stag because still weak on the jobs.
5. IT SEEMS getting on a year out, that Obama has been middle-waying it pretty well.  I am way left, expected him to constantly disappoint me with half measures and delays and obtuse stupidities caused by his um, sheer lack of experience (still better than the guy who learned the wrong lessons from his experience, if he hadn't he would have run as the guy he was rather than the guy they told him he had to be).  He has not disappointed my expectations.  The other side is very frothy, which is funny until someone gets hurt.  So if radicals on both sides are mad he's probably just about right.
6. I DON'T UNDERSTAND why they can't get clarity on Afghanistan.  Its going to be hard, but they need India, Russia, and Iran in on the deal if they want to get it done.  So they sort of half have Russia, which means they have a handle on Iran finally (but only as long as Russia is happy).  India is to balance Pakistan.  Without India Pakistan will continue as the disintegrating sink of corruption that it is.  Pak can't secure its western border without security on the east.  What have we offered India?  I don't know.  Do you?
7. POLL: Have we pushed the planet over the edge?  Define "edge" and then answer: yes or no?

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mail: Bob Reis, POB 26303, Raleigh NC 27611, USA