patrick.net

I can see a guy taking a risk to go after "Yamashita's Gold" or something but so much of this "risk taking" is risk for risk's sake. I don't need to slide down a bannister full of razor blades to know that it might be painful. Those of us that have done even the most casual of research regarding the Sea of Cortez know that it is only pleasant in Jimmy Buffet songs. Those islands are uninhabited for a f@cking reason. There is nothing there to sustain life. I once read that it was rumored that one of the islands was inhabited by cannibals. Small f@cking wonder. Dickheads.

DinOR,

There is no stronger addiction than adrenaline, IMHO. I did some skydiving in my youth. Those precious seconds of flying like a bird in free fall are an indescribably pure joy and thrill. It was one of the few things I know that could wipe my mind clean.

Foolish? Probably. After about 50 jumps and one reserve ride it was still wonderful fun and the view is breathtaking. But I was no longer afraid and that really scared me. Like any other drug one develops a tolerance to thrills. Still and all the memories follow close behind my wedding day and my son's birth.

I'm not a sailor so I can't judge the foolhardiness of the fellows you were watching. I guess every thrill seeker has a different "drug of choice." I'm on the wagon now, myself.

GF -

I wasn't saying that the Brits didn't take some casualties, what I was saying was, compared to the hype at the time, they took far less than expected, because the Argentines in the falklands themselves were ready to fold before it started.

In Iraq, in contrast, nobody expected the US to take significant casualties despite the numbers of troops involved.

I was merely pointing out with two examples that immediately popped to mind, that your blanket statement:

Strictly in military terms, I can’t think of any more lopsided, overwhelming miltary victory in modern history.

was a bit on the hyperbolic side.

I can think of other examples, Panama, even Afghanistan was easier and really is having a better outcome a few years on, as there are significant forces within Afghanistan supporting the outcome.

The US hasn't taken casualties on a level comparable to their adversaries since the civil war. Every war the balance shifts more and more in favour of the US, but conversely, US belief in the wars being fought amongst the general public seems to sink lower and lower.

tsusiat,

I think Gulf War I comes to mind. The outcome there was much better and the casualties were very low. At least amongst the Chinese, the US won enormous respect for their speedy execution and withdrawl.

Astrid,

Thanks for the NYT cite re affordability in Salinas . It is bizarre. All the newest and biggest homes are on the east side, which coincidentally has the largest concentration of Surenos and Nortenos. It's also where I saw the Spanish language street sign offering homes for sale "no money down." In other words, "You're broke and don't speak English? We want to sell you a house."

And another developing Nor Cal story: today the Sacramento MSA is a hair's breadth from its all-time historical high water mark in listing inventory established in '92. The population adjusted per capita figures are still substantially lower, but Johnny Cash already sang this song:

"How high's the water, Momma? Five feet high and risin'."

http://bubbletracking.blogspot.com/

Garth,

Yup, crazy world, isn't it?

In a way, this makes some sense. The prime BA areas were built out decades ago, and a goodly portion of the population bought in early and have very low mortgages. The prices in prime BA areas are now so exorbitant and the number of listings are so low that very can afford to buy in at any price. I'm guessing that the locals of Salinas, Santa Rosa, and Watsonville is suffering from a combination of price squeeze from BA refugees (who can afford more) and plentiful available housing, so a higher proportion of idiots are able to buy in and really hang themselves.

From BAP33's comments, it seems like Central Valley is suffering something similar, albeit with lower dollar amounts.

Surfer-X,

You're making those blowhards sound downright indispensible. :)

conor,
you must be a gold bug. I dont know about speculation, manipulation, central bankers plot to have wide swings in the price of gold so that the regular joe looses all his will power to invest in anything other than the fiat paper.

Case in point, the new etf in silver has probably let the TPTB to take such massive short positions, that even warren buffett may not like.

I like randy idea aout the cool calculating way of investing rather than using emotions while investing. Also i remember randy saying that he will start selling gold around 800$.

as for me i have 30-40 % in gold. also iam wanting to buy farm lands

hessesfan,

The problem with cool calculation alone is that the world is not built on cool calculations, especially in the short run. If it was, no one would play lotteries and casinos would go bankrupt. Dot.com bubble and 200 P/E ratio China stocks would never exist. People aren't rational, and while dollar averaging and being conservative may (because even a cold rationalist can't predict the future with absolute certainty) be the best way to long for the long haul, you can miss a lot of speculation opportunities in the short run.

Re: farmland. If you're going directly for farmland, keep a close eye on the balance sheet. If this government starts cutting back in a serious manner, they may finally get around to attack ag subsidies. Also, fertilizers and ag chemicals are often derived from fossil fuel. Shipping costs and land reclaimation can also be a problem. Finally, keep an eye on the weather and dependable water supply. Very few people (yes, I know some do) get rich from farming.

Hey, I was wondering of someone could help me out.

Umm...I'm thinking about buying some houses in the Bay Area as an investment & stuff...

What's up?

Should I go for it?

I heard you can make some pimp $$ bucks $$ flipping houses or renting them out.

Is it true?

Hey, I was wondering if someone could help me out.

I'm giving up my real estate career and going back to pole dancing. Would someone lend me $5,000 for breast implants?

PS, what's better: silicone or saline?

PPS, do you think I should get butt implants?

Hey, I was wondering if someone could help me out.

Someone offered to sell me a bridge in "Brooklyn" today. He said it was a real big bridge and I can go 103% neg am on financing. I know, it's a total winner.

Can someone tell me where "Brooklyn" is?

(Hey Michael, I know you're kidding, I really admire the format)

Hey, I was wondering if someone could help me out.

A Minister Matuto of the Congo has contacted me to help him access a substantial Swiss bank account. He said we can go 70/30 on the deal after he gets the funds.

He said he needs to wire the money to my bank account and that he needs my bank account number.

How do I find out my bank account number?

SP,

War is a nasty business. In the past societies have rationalized it behind nationalism and necessity, and maintained it through strict social herarchies. But since the bloody business of WWI, western societies have certainly shifted towards a more pacific mood. WWII added Japan and Germany to that list. A protracted and costly war will rip America apart, without any help from the Muslim world.

Furthermore, occupation is just a very nasty business. Vietnam was essentially an American occupation of South Vietnam while fighting Viet Cong guerillas. Just a terrible, soul wrenching business, and a failure.

I think we already bungled so much in Iraq so that now the primary question is damage control. Is it costlier to stay or costlier to go? I chose to go and live with the consequences of that decision.

Garth,

Since I'm dipping my foot back into the Iraq, I'd better answer the question you were quite properly posing to me. Do I think the American show of force will have a preventative effect on the miscreants in the Middleeast and beyond? I don't think so. I think America has bungled it up and made itself look weaker and more vulnerable. Furthermore, Iraq and Iran has lived through a very bloody war in its recent past. If the threat of war could persuade them from misbehavior, they had their lesson in the Iran-Iraq War and Gulf War I.

America has much more to lose in Iraq now. It hadn't been involved in such a bloody and morally ambiguous conflict in 30 years. What we do right and what we do wrong will be judged, by the international community and by Americans. This conflict could divide us again, albeit less than in Vietnam because of the all volunteer army. However, the all volunteer army is now having trouble meeting its recruitment goals.

Cold calculations aren't enough when we're dealing with hundred or thousands of young American lives. Americans don't truly believe in the goodness of imperialism, something taken for granted by every other empire in the history of the world. So when we use our forces to act, it better be a good reason, or we could lose our own soul over the conflict.

SP,

The Russian desire for warm water ports is understandable (being a frozen second banana sucks), but England and Austria Hungary was pretty much controlling the Mediterrean between themselves, so a real warm water port wouldn't really solve their second banana status.

Plus, Czar Nicky and Kaiser Willie are just such funny guys. And the Czarina! Aren't you glad you didn't marry that crazy woman?

The_Scum,

Hehe, nice renter name. Thanks for the recs, I certainly will look into them and look forward to hearing input about them from others here.

SP
Yeah...where the f@ck is George Carlin?

Sacramento Metropolitan Statistical Area now at its all-time historical high inventory per http://bubbletracking.blogspot.com/

Also foreclosures and pre-foreclosures up again in Sacramento city yesterday per
http://sacramentohousingbubble.blogspot.com/

I'm no longer agnostic. Alert the media.

Peter (who is not Peter P),

Thanks for correcting me and for your informative post. Do you know a good place to grow lychee? :P

what's a postmodernist?

DS,

"what’s a postmodernist?"

Tell me you've given in to sarcasm.

i

Ha Ha,

You still owe an apology to a certain member of this blog.

test

test test

HaHa
So you made more Hahas to add to your Hahas?

On June 20 there will be a green building tradeshow at the Moscone Center in SF.
I wonder if it really be informative on nuances of green builing or just a builders sales pitch.

Here is the list of speakers...
Thomas Hoyt, Founder/Mission Advisor, McStain Neighborhoods, Louisville, CO
Jeff Jacobs, Project Manager, Centex Homes, San Ramon, CA
Mark LaLiberte, President, Building Knowledge Inc., Minneapolis, MN
Vernon McKown, President of Sales, Ideal Homes, Norman, OK
John Suppes, Principal, Clarum Homes, Palo Alto, CA
Brooke Warrick, President, American LIVES, Carmel Valley, CA

testes

My friend sells old books and I came across this title in her collection "collected short stories from the Balkans" am I the only one that thinks a book complied of small stories from the balkans is funny? Is the book balkanized?

X
Did you see SNL last night? They had a whole song about testes... with Tom Hanks...who was actually quite funny!

@Linda, yeah it was pretty funny. wanna see something really funny?

tinyurl.com/o62kk

X
Your url didn't work.

@linda you have to cut and paste it into a window, try this one

www.nbc.com/Video/videos/snl_1439_natalieraps.shtml

http://tinyurl.com/lynpk

Surfer-X
I think you'll like this one.
Have you seen beer boy before???
I know it's made the rounds before.

Try this one...

http://www.mrandmrswheatley.co.uk/cunningstunt.html

OK
So I've had a tough coulpa days....

I keep mispronouncing "cunning stunt'! :lol:
Who the heck named that one anyway!

Must've been a woman....

Conor Says:

"The hardest part about explaining gold to others is it’s hard to do without sounding like a crackpot lunatic.

Conor, umm I've seen some pretty wacky sh-t said on this site.

I don't think it gets any zanier than the price of stucco covered chicken coops for $800K+ in the Bay Area.

If anything, if it isn't sensational, chances are people will let out a collective yawn. I don't know about anyone else, but I'm pretty
fried on the insanity of it all...spent, deadpan, a former shell of myself, etc.

I kind of perk up and stir when dudes come on here saying they make $150K plus salaries with their BS degree from Corndog University.

"I kind of perk up and stir when dudes come on here saying they make $150K plus salaries with their BS degree from Corndog University."

That's the only reason I visit this blog. I want to learn the secret!

GentleCheetah Says:

Besides, there’s nothing one can do. Every so often, wars come about to wipe the slate clean.

If you look at it, China and India, with their combined 2.5 B population, are bound to clash with the developed world. Although many prefer to look away from reality and think economic competition is NOT a zero-sum game, in reality it always is. There is only so much market for so many goods; there is so much resource for x number of people at y level of living standards.

The HISTORY knows only one way to resolve such a conflict: That is WAR. In addition, let me borrow an observation by Richard Maybury, China has excess male population that she must find a way to “employ” and/or get rid of.

_____

Cheetah, look up the book REPORT FROM IRON MOUNTAIN. John Kenneth Galbraith, the recently deceased Economist, is the author. But I'll tell you,
things in that book that look wacky, like what you are saying, don't look so far-fetched or kooked-out.