{"id":34703,"date":"2015-11-21T03:00:13","date_gmt":"2015-11-21T11:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lenpenzo.com\/blog\/?p=34703"},"modified":"2015-11-21T07:48:15","modified_gmt":"2015-11-21T15:48:15","slug":"black-coffee-wall-street-and-the-new-york-state-of-mind","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lenpenzo.com\/blog\/id34703-black-coffee-wall-street-and-the-new-york-state-of-mind.html","title":{"rendered":"Black Coffee: Wall Street and the New York State of Mind"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"black<\/a>It’s time to sit back, relax and enjoy a little joe<\/em> …<\/p>\n

Welcome to another rousing edition of Black Coffee, your off-beat weekly round-up of what’s been going on in the world of money and personal finance.<\/p>\n

Here we go …<\/p>\n

Credits and Debits<\/strong><\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> So … How do we know when a bear market for equities is just around the corner? When we see articles like this one<\/a> from MarketWatch entitled “Why 100% of Your Investment Portfolio Should Be in Stocks.” Heh.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> Meanwhile, the second US housing bubble in 10 years also looks like it is getting ready to pop<\/a> — in spite of the government trying to keep it inflated via relatively new but reckless programs<\/a> that allow low income homebuyers to move in with only 3% down.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> It’s hard to believe the economy is as rosy as Wall Street seems to believe when half of all New Yorkers<\/a> say that, when it comes to their personal finances, they’re struggling — or worse.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> You can bet people are having a harder time making ends meet these days because of skyrocketing healthcare costs due to Obamacare. Even the ultra-liberal New York Times is now showing how Obamacare’s high deductibles make it “all but useless<\/a>” for most people. Of course, you know what that means, folks: hell just froze over.<\/p>\n

Credit:<\/strong><\/span> Speaking of Obamacare, it took another step towards its inevitable demise this week when the nation’s largest health insurer, UnitedHealth, said it “may” drop individual coverage<\/a> in 2017 due to Obamacare’s “weak enrollment and high medical costs.” May? May?<\/em> Ha ha ha ha ha ha!<\/p>\n

Credit:<\/strong><\/span> The good news is, many doctors, specialists and physical therapists are bypassing Obamacare’s bureaucracy by transitioning to direct-pay medicine<\/a>. It’s far less expensive and, as an added bonus, healthcare providers get to spend more time with fewer patients. Imagine that.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> Did you see this? A former US comptroller general is now warning that, when it comes to federal spending, “Americans have lost touch with reality<\/a>.” Ya think? <\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> In fact, Dave Walker, who headed the Government Accountability Office under Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, says unfunded liabilities make the true National Debt three times more than the nearly $19 trillion figure that the government is currently claiming. What an optimist<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> By the way, the states have their own unfunded liabilities to contend with: America’s 25 largest public pension Ponzi schemes<\/a> are underfunded by $2 trillion — and growing. No surprise there; last time I checked, the only place you can legitimately retire at age 50 with a full-salary pension and live like a king for 35 years is Utopia.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> The truth is, the world economy is now incapable of growing fast enough to get out from under the massive debt overhang that’s dragging it down; we’re just in too deep. Unfortunately, that means only two realistic exits remain: an intentional reset of the international monetary system — or an inevitable economic collapse<\/a>. Go ahead; pick your poison.<\/p>\n

Credit:<\/strong><\/span> Thankfully, there’s a silver lining. Although a lower standard of living for most Americans is unavoidable now<\/a>, in the long run we’ll all be better off. That’s because most, if not all, of the manufacturing jobs that went overseas — along with the resulting prosperity — will end up coming home.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> Believe it or not, as Alhambra Investment Partners points out, the Fed actually saw the factors that would lead to the eventual end of the dollar-based international monetary system way back in 1979<\/a> — the central bankers just refused to heed their own warnings.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> When the US is<\/em> finally forced to live within its means, we’ll stop seeing stories like the one that recently shined a spotlight on a Defense Department gas station built in the middle of Afghanistan for $43 million<\/a> — even though the private sector builds similar stations in neighboring Pakistan for $500,000. Sheesh. Talk about fuelish expenditures.<\/p>\n

The Question of the Week<\/strong><\/p>\n

[poll id=\"89\"]<\/code><\/p>\n

Last Week’s Poll Result<\/strong><\/p>\n

Which ability would you rather have?<\/p>\n