Get ready for Stimulus Version 2.0. With unemployment in double-digit territory, credit still tight and consumers refusing to part with their cash, it’s obvious Washington’s first bailout did nothing but put the nation even further in debt and give China an even larger stake of the country’s financial future.

Is the drop in the dollar worth watching? Just like the sun will eventually shine its last ray of light, the mighty dollar will someday buy its last barrel of oil or its final container of Chinese imports.

We all know it is going to happen, so why bother discussing it. Right?

Resident voice of reason at The Daily Reckoning, Bill Bonner takes a hard look at Goldman Sachs and replaces jealousy with admiration.
“We pick up sword and shield, ready to fight for Goldman, after reading the Financial Times. The FT has devoted a whole page to Goldman bashing. It’s time someone stood up to say a kind word for the firm.”

All eyes and ears are on the Fed this week. With Bernanke in New York discussing potential new bubbles and the New York Fed getting heat for overpaying AIG’s many creditors, investors are having a tough time knowing exactly who to follow.

For those of you who hold up the “Fire the Fed” signs, move over. I am thinking about joining your camp.

Baltimore (TFN): Today’s the day. If you have ever hunted for undersea gold, you likely know Mel Fisher’s famous mantra. The great shipwreck hunter used the line thousands of times before it became the undeniable truth on the day he uncovered the “Atocha mother lode.”

David Rosenberg, chief economist for Gluskin-Sheff, is a contrarian with a superior intellect than our own. That’s why we hang on most every word he says.

Our trip to Paris served as a brief distraction from the “good news” chatter that MSM floods us with. “Global confidence index holds at record high as signs recession has ended,” reads Bloomberg. Yesterday, Chairman Ben indicated that the recession is over, sending stocks and commodities higher.

In the spirit of not suffering from confirmation bias, in today’s Notes we will try to make the bearish case against gold. So before you storm Notes HQ in Buenos Aires craving blood, hear us out. Many of our staff here love gold and have long term holdings.

Economist Joseph Stiglitz doesn’t think too highly of the green shoot talk either. On Thursday he told reporters that, “It’s not clear that the U.S. is recovering in a sustainable way”.  

We received a letter snooty letter recently accusing us of confirmation bias. Maybe we are only capable of seeing the bearish side of the story?