Judy Stark, the Homes and Garden editor for the St. Petersburg Times, writes that it is a “sign of the times” when a local county-sponsored workshop on vegetable gardening has suddenly hit the 200-person capacity of the room.

She says that this means, “there is great interest in growing your own food so you know what’s in it or on it, and avoid high prices at the grocery store.”

Fabulous! So now we know that the economic miracle that Alan Greenspan at the Federal Reserve was supposed to be delivering to us with all of that excessive creation of money and credit to finance the creation of permanent government programs, permanent inflation in the money supply, permanent inflation in consumer prices and permanent inflation in government employment has now required some people to take up subsistence farming to survive!

And it may be Canadians becoming small-scale farmers again, too, as Forextv.com reports that “Economists Say Canadian Labour Force Drop Shows Job Boom Is Over”, which is the reaction to a CEP News report that “55,200 Canadian jobs disappeared in July, the largest monthly drop since the early 1990s. The unemployment rate actually shrank, dropping a tenth of a point to 6.1% as an even larger number of people – more than 74,000 of them – dropped out of the labour force during the month.”

The numbers are similar in Quebec, as the unemployment rate there “edged up by two ticks to 7.4% while in Ontario, the rate fell to 6.4% from 6.7% in June as 42,000 people left the labour market.”

It makes you wonder how people “left the labor market”, as this would imply that their families did not constantly hound them and harass them to get another job right away, right now, now, now, now, and how me just sitting there on the couch in nothing but a pair of underwear and sucking down yet another bottle of cold brew proves that “Mom was right! You are a terrible, worthless, lazy father who doesn’t care about us!” and I am screaming back at them, “I could have told you that, you stupid damned kids!”

As I interpret it, Forex.com figures that the government is gearing up for a frontal assault on the people, where they will herd us mercilessly into processing facilities to turn us into Soylent Green, as is suggested by the fact that “A gain of nearly 30,000 public sector positions partially offset the loss of 95,000 in the private sector.”

In fact, “Since July of 2007, employment in the public sector has grown by 6.1% compared with +0.5% for the private sector.” Yikes!

All of this unemployment must be impacting demand for goods and services, which may be what prompted Jim Sinclair of jsmineset.com to ask a lot of questions, including “Do you really believe that present inflation is demand driven?”

This is the crux of the argument by Mark Gertler, a professor at New York University, who unbelievably writes to the Financial Times to take issue with the whole idea “that monetary policy is the root cause of the recent increase in the relative prices of energy and food.” Huh? Astonishingly, he says that concentrating on the increases in the supply of money “dismisses the critical non-monetary factors, including increasing commodity demand from strong capacity growth of the global economy, coupled with short-run supply constraints and various government distortions.”

To this, I laugh out loud and make rude noises in his direction as if someone farted, which makes me laugh out loud some more, and so I make more farting noises, which makes me laugh even louder, and then I am laughing so hard that I actually fart for real, which makes it even FUNNIER and pretty soon I am laughing so hard I can’t catch my breath, which is good because it smells like someone farted.

Well, I soon realized that the farting thing was not my most brilliant attention-getting device, as I can see the security guards gathering to plan their rush upon my position and hustle me out of here.

So, not wasting another precious moment and obviously without waiting to be asked why I am frantically waving my hand in the air like a lunatic and shouting, “Hey! Hey!” over and over, I instead shout out, “Hold on there, doofus! Demand is but desire made manifest, and there is no limit on desire! And if you don’t believe me, take your New York University butt over to my house and ask my family something like ‘Hey, how would you like a nice burrito?’ and you will notice they all say they would love to have a burrito!

“Then ask them ‘Hey, how would you like a new car?’ and they will all say that they would love to have a new car AND a burrito! And when you ask them, ‘And how are you going to pay for this stuff, you greedy little bastards?’ you will learn the ugly fact (as they have learned the ugly fact), that without the money to finance infinite desires, ‘demand’ doesn’t really mean squat.

“And so you can also forget about ‘capacity growth’, too, because without the money to fuel the demand growth, there ain’t no stinking capacity growth, and thus there won’t be any ’short-run supply constraints’, although there will always be ‘various government distortions.’”

In short, the availability of money (the increase in the money supply) must come first if you are going to get systemic inflation in prices, and not the other way around, which you would think some hotshot economist from New York University would know!

And I’ll bet he doesn’t know that gold and silver are the “investment of choice” in response to such monetary insanity, either, so he’ll get his comeuppance, which pleases me greatly, for some reason! Hahahaha!

Source: Unemployment Survival Guide

Jim thinks illegal short selling is distorting the market and wants to stamp it out. In particular, he says junior exploration stocks have been long abused by illegal shorting. And he’s offering $50,000 (in gold, naturally) to anyone who can help him out…

The Biggest Stock Market Scandal You’ve Never Heard Of

By Russell McDougal

Can you make your life’s fortune swimming upstream? Yea, I think you can. Stay within the school and you’ll receive what the masses historically receive… a portion of bread and a ton of circus. Make that bread and CNBC if you will.

You are wise not to get caught up in the day to day and minute to minute pabulum thrown your way by the NY/DC axis of weasels. The knee jerk reactions they illicit are best left to the orthopedic surgeons.

Let’s look at some big picture stuff. The most gullible people on the planet, overall, have U.S. zip codes. It is nothing short of astounding how many citizens buy into the official stats our government regularly dispenses. Distraction may just play a part in that problem. Life is complex and I confess to being easily distracted. We must insist on focus.

Today we’re going to look into a criminal enterprise that would make Al Capone blush. He’s turning over in his syphilitic grave and kicking himself for not being the first to think of it. Lacking imagination, that guy.

Here’s the deal. I’ll start with a poem… “he that takes what isn’t hizzen, pays it back or goes to prison”.

Talk about an outmoded ditty. These days you can take what’s not yours, sell it, and not go to prison. White collar folk seldom do hard time in case you wondered. They just pay back 10 to 20% of their ill gotten gains.

Would you like unlimited access to trade a market in your desired direction?

Most of us simply buy stocks and go long that position. We are convinced it’s going higher. You can also short a stock. Say, for example, you believe IBM is going lower. You can sell IBM even though you don’t personally own it. You can call your broker tomorrow and sell IBM and the money from this sell will then appear in your account.

This type of transaction is legal because the intermediary (your broker) can borrow IBM stock from a different client and sell this stock into the market. “Shorting” is a completely normal market function. You can go long or you can go short. It’s all good.

Where’s the problem? You are not supposed to be able to short a stock unless you can actually access that stock. Do you think you could hold sway over a market if you were given unlimited access to that particular position? You don’t have to own it personally and you don’t even have to borrow it.

It’s called a naked sale. You sell something you don’t own and have no access to. You can influence and actually dominate any market you choose with this mechanism. This is completely illegal if the intent is to force share prices lower. Unfortunately, the security laws regarding this type of fraud are not enforced.

Naked short sells are commonplace. U.S. hedge funds appear to be the primary abusers. Small cap stocks are the frequent targets. Some companies have more shares sold short than they have issued! This is an obvious fraud. Dishonesty has been institutionalized.

The junior exploration stocks have long been abused by these activities. Recent events suggest this is about to cease. A gentleman named Jim Sinclair has just pledged his full attention and personal fortune to the cause of ending this fraud. Sinclair has been an absolute giant in the world of gold for decades. He knows his stuff. He is also completely fearless.

His recent proposals put illegal short sale offenders on notice that they stand to be criminally prosecuted. A $50,000 gold reward is part of this picture. So is organizational activity. Expect more perp walks in the coming months and years.

I strongly believe that the entire junior exploration and mining share sector has been under the influence of both legal and illegal shorting activity. This is a partial explanation for their recent failure to keep pace with various commodity prices. Their historic leverage to mineral prices has been M.I.A. for an extended period of time.

We’ve definitely been swimming upstream, but the currents are now changing. It will just take a few exposures to put an end to illegal naked short selling. No one wants to spend their days alongside the deposed Elliot Spitzer.

When, not if, the naked short-selling drag is removed from these small stocks, they will begin a price appreciation process. Those who are shorting them legally will have to close out their positions. The only way this can be done is to buy the shares back. The shorted companies will turn upward. Possibly with a vengeance.

All small stocks are particularly vulnerable to targeted shorting. It’s not just those in the resource sector. The Enron debacle is more representative of our markets than most care to believe. We demand and deserve better.

Invest Resourcefully,

Rusty

P.S. Jim Sinclair’s considered opinion is that gold is next heading above $1600. I don’t doubt him. Being short anything gold related when we head in that direction will be financial suicide.

P.P.S. To let me know what you thought of today’s article, send an e-mail to: feedback@investorsdailyedge.com.

Source: Are You Being Yanked by the Shorts?

Want to see Jim Sinclair’s gold tips? Click here to read more about which way Jim thinks gold prices are headed.

Gold advanced in London, heading for a third consecutive weekly gain, as rising crude-oil prices spurred demand for the metal as a hedge against inflation. Silver and platinum also climbed.

Crude oil traded in New York has jumped 37 percent this year and reached a record yesterday. Euro-region consumer prices rose 3.3 percent in April from a year earlier after jumping 3.6 percent in March, the most in almost 16 years.

Doug Casey quotes Nick Ruggiero, a trader at Eagle Futures Inc. in New York, who noted gold’s recent link to oil and said, “You’ve got to be cautious because when you do get a big sell-off in oil, all commodities are going to get hit hard.”

And how much does the paper gold market influence the metal’s price? Plenty, according to Jim Sinclair of Jsmineset.com, also quoted by Doug in CaseyResearch.com.

“It would be bullish to shut down the US market for gold,” Sinclair writes, “because then you would have a thin market with a positive Euro bent on gold and a more positive global market would be created.

“No access for major traders will be denied, that you can be sure of. I would love to see US trading stopped in paper gold. That would be good for $150 on the upside after less than 24 hours. The poor COT would not be able to create the influence on the global market they do with the aid of the US paper market cabal.”

Platinum pushed as high as $2230 in Hong Kong, but sank through to New York, then traded sideways to end at $2164/oz., down $37. Overnight, platinum has been flat.

While silver was lower to the mid-point of the London session, it rallied from there, making its way nearly back to the break-even point, and closing at $17.96/oz., down just 2 cents. Overnight, silver has been trending higher.
(Click here for charts)

As might have been expected, there was profit-taking in the precious metals yesterday after their recent runup.

But the damage wasn’t large, especially considering that the usual market movers, oil and the dollar, both went against them, with the former backing off and the latter staging a modest rally.

In fact, some analysts were making the case that both the dollar’s rise and gold’s fall were technical in nature.

Technician Zachary Oxman, of Wisdom Financial, believes that, “Until we cross and close above the $940 level, we’ll remain range-bound between $900 and $940.”

Nick Ruggiero, a trader at Eagle Futures Inc. in New York, noted gold’s recent link to oil and said, “You’ve got to be cautious because when you do get a big sell-off in oil, all commodities are going to get hit hard.”

And how much does the paper gold market influence the metal’s price? Plenty, contends Jim Sinclair of jsmineset.com.

“It would be bullish to shut down the US market for gold,” Sinclair writes, “because then you would have a thin market with a positive Euro bent on gold and a more positive global market would be created.

“No access for major traders will be denied, that you can be sure of. I would love to see US trading stopped in paper gold. That would be good for $150 on the upside after less than 24 hours. The poor COT would not be able to create the influence on the global market they do with the aid of the US paper market cabal.”

Source: Gold Corrects, Following Oil

Platinum did much better, pushing higher through the NYMEX session and trading sideways during the afternoon, to end just off its intraday high at $1960/oz., up $33. Overnight, platinum is sharply lower.

Silver ran all the way to $17 at mid-morning, before determined afternoon selling took it back to a close at $16.84, up 15 cents. Overnight, silver is trending lower.
(Click here for charts)

A pretty lackluster day for gold, although its sister metals performed well, as buyers are trying hard to put the ‘correction,’ if that’s what it was, behind them.

It didn’t hurt that it was a very supportive day on the part of the usual suspects, surging energy prices and a dollar that continues to tank, although gold bulls had to be disappointed that the metals market didn’t react more dramatically.

Clearly, traders are not throwing their arms entirely around the factors that are breaking so much in their favor. It is also likely that some see the bounce of recent days as an opportunity to take some cash off the table. And others may be watching as the first quarter reports from the gold miners flood in.

Most influential, though, is probably the dollar. Many are wary after it had such a run-up against the euro, and are biding their time until they become convinced that the buck has truly turned down again.

Jim Sinclair, of jsmineset.com, isn’t mincing his words on the subject. “Keep in mind,” he writes, “that the fundamental reason for gold’s normal violent reaction was the euro coming off the $1.60 level, seen by some as a top. It is NOT!”

He goes on to say that “it is unlikely that the ECB will join the Fed in the race to 0%. Considering inflation even at the manufactured rate the PPI and CPI show, the Fed is giving away money in exchange for garbage paper at ZERO percent.”

Sinclair concludes: “I dare to say the bottom in gold has occurred this week. Gold will take out $1024 on the third try. Now the magnet is at $980 to $985.”

Silver took its lumps into the first hour of the New York morning session, then traded sideways for the balance of the day, closing at $16.56, down 43 cents. Overnight, silver is trending lower.
(Click here for charts)

A gloomy day for precious metals investors ahead of today’s interest rate announcement by the Federal Reserve, with gold down 2.3 and silver 2.5%.

The usual suspects lined up against gold, with the dollar firming and oil sliding in price, but that probably doesn’t explain the broad-based selloff. The selling resembled March’s washout of weak hands.

But there could be another factor in play. The market is behaving as if the Fed announcement will be gold-negative no matter what. This could indicate a belief that the Fed will stand pat, rather than lower rates yet again.

Or it could signal that the market believes that, if indeed another quarter point is lopped off, that will be the last such cut. Fundamentally, it makes little difference whether interest rates remain steady or drop a little more. In both cases, increased inflation is baked in the cake. Gold cannot long remain depressed.

Jim Sinclair, writing on jsmineset.com, has nailed it, in our opinion, saying that, “The following is what has pressured gold and caused short covering in the dollar/euro: Media has convinced the public that the Fed will go hawkish, first by decelerating the drop in interest rates. The deceleration has been attributed to the Fed having done the right thing.

“Media has convinced the public that the ECB will reduce interest rates now faster than the Fed, thereby boosting the dollar versus the euro. Although the business statistics are negative, the media has held out the carrot that it takes six months for the Fed’s action to materialize in the economy so all will be well in six to nine months.

“The idea that the credit crisis is over is the message that firming financials are communicating as media supports that position. Media has declared gold as DEAD.”

Most of that, Sinclair says, “is raving BS,” and we agree.

Platinum was above $2040 as New York opened, declined from there back to the $2000 level, but then rebounded modestly to end at $2012/oz., down $41. Overnight, platinum is off sharply.

Silver had a very volatile day, rising as high as $17.95 right at the open, then taking a shot to the chin for the second straight day and collapsing to as low as $17.25 before a mild rally raised it to close at $17.42, down 42 cents. Overnight, silver is trending higher.
(Click here for charts)

Gold investors hoping for a big bounce from bargain hunters after Friday’s nosedive were disappointed at not getting it, while fanciers of silver and platinum had to be even more troubled.

It was especially disconcerting since the usual suspects, the declining dollar and rising oil, lined up in the metals’ favor. But they were clearly caught up in the broad-based commodity selling that took place yesterday.

“The lower weekly close in gold was bearish from a technical point of view,” wrote Mark O’Byrne, of Gold & Silver Investments Ltd., but “with oil and the dollar remaining near record highs and record lows respectively and with physical demand internationally and particularly in Asia and China remaining strong, gold is unlikely to fall below $900 per ounce.”

A while back, we alerted readers of a gambling nature that Jim Sinclair of jsmineset.com was willing to wager a million bucks that gold will trade at $1650 on or before the close of the COMEX open outcry session at the end of the 2nd week of January 2011.

Now it appears that Sinclair has found a taker. He announced that it “appears an agreement will be concluded shortly between myself and a Canadian hedge fund as counsel for both parties.”

Sinclair has not as yet named the other bettor, but he promises to release all details once the deal is finalized. For our part, we’re inclined to believe that Jim will make himself a cool million.

And the wire service Interfax reported that, “For the first time, the Central Bank of Russia purchased gold for its international reserves from gold producers, a source in banking circles [says]. Previously the Central Bank had always purchased gold on the interbank market.”