Off topic but I posted this in one other Hub but thought it might fit in a bit with what has been discussed by a few others here (phataccord, Truth Machine, etc.).

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I'm just getting back to the "other reality" after being away for the last 9 days experiencing some azure waters down south...only to see the TSX in the ruby red by 300 points This is probably all going to spew out as off topic so feel free to move on if you wish.

It sounds like I missed some fun. I was wondering what title to give this post.

"The BS of Bear Stearns"?

"The ABC's of ABCP's"?

"Spring Break: Gold Springs While the Markets Break"

Those were the first ones to come to mind. Well, I see the Asset Backed Commercial Paper fiasco came to a head as of Friday (which no doubt caused todays turmoil). Lo and behold the Canadian Committee To Fix Things That Should Never Have Been Broken were hard at work tonight. We can all rest our weary heads that the plan is to now consolidate the resulting doo-doo paper so that it's out of the reach of enraged investors and safely in bankruptcy protection. The goal is for Canada to be "the first country to complete a successful restructuring without governments bailing anybody out".

In a nutshell, the idea is to take the short-term paper and transform it into longer notes, with maturity dates of up to nine years...with the idea being those who hold to term will recoup much of the value.

I would like to plug in something here that I discussed with the many store merchants I met during my sojourn. There is no "they". All of the "they's" we talk about when it comes to bail outs are you and I. The government is funded by we, the taxpayer. When the government bails out, we are footing the bill. Much of this loss is money invested by large banks who used our money for these fancy investments. Some may call this disposable wealth but in fact much of it is pension fund money. The reality is, the investors whose money this is, may or may not be able to survive if their money is now vaporized. The next line in the sand they have drawn is April 16...which may be moved yet again.

One of the people I met was a jeweller/storekeeper in St. Thomas. He was originally from India and came to the U.S. Virgin islands to make his fortune. He sees what is happening to the U.S. economy and to the local tourism...and is very scared. This is the peak season and the times are not good. He is selling gold jewelery that he bought when gold was $400-$600 an ounce. When he gets new stock he knows people will not want to pay the prices that gold now demands of them. He is seriously considering a move back to India where his countries economy is booming.

Consider this: Much of the economy of these islands rely on tourists. In order to get there, they take huge ships and big airplanes that run on lots of fuel. As this fuel goes up (most are now charging a fuel surcharge) the cost of the vacation goes up. Thus, the number of tourists go down. Royal Caribbean scrambled to try and fill our ship with last minute $500 tickets.(they then inundated the passengers with all kinds of selling promotions afterwards but thats another story).

Our waiter was from Romania. He only gets home for a few weeks every six months from the ship. I asked him if he had long term plans. He too was quite aware of the precarious state of the U.S. economy. He said "I am thinking these two economies may one day meet and at that point I can or will have to go back home". By that statement I knew what he meant.

The economy she is a hurting. Tourism (real disposable income) is easily proving that. Bankruptcy and consolidation of the airlines will be happening very soon. Because direct flights are an expensive luxury now, the more efficient short-haul connections from a few hubs are more cost beneficial. But they are a nightmare because of the chain-reaction that even one delay causes. A "travel day" is often a 24-48 hour experience now..as many of you can probably relate to.

I guess this rant was just my way of saying, or reaffirming, things are not going well out there. Gold and oil are both priced internationally in U.S. dollars. As those dollars get weaker those two will continue to go up. Manipulation can only control supply for so long. The demand is what it is. Everyone knows there is no foreseeable end to where the dollar will finally rest. If you continue to put your disposable income (or even that which is not as disposable) into quality gold producer or gold exploration stocks, then you will be that much further ahead of the herd in the end. But be prepared for when panic sets in and the stampede ensues.

Happy St. Paddy's Day.

Crow {

(The more introverted TDC hub leader)