Say NO to ISDS - Vote NO on TPP

By Crista Huff

I recently wrote about the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement's Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) provision, in a letter to the Colorado Statesman, Say 'NO' to ISDS: Vote 'NO' on TPP. ISDS represents an unprecedented ability for foreign companies to sue U.S. states and municipalities in global courts, completely bypassing the U.S. justice system. Now that we've seen the U.S. Supreme Court's willingness to trample states' rights via their recent decision on gay marriage, the reality of potential ISDS lawsuits trampling U.S. sovereignty becomes bone-chilling. Don't let the Obama administration throw Anytown U.S.A. under the bus! Tell Congress to vote "NO" on the TPP. [more...]

Obama's Terrifying Agreement with World Leaders Could Spell Disaster for Millions

By Lowell Ponte

Greece, the Euro currency and Europe's entire economy may be slipping into chaos and dragging us down with them. After a fearful weekend that emptied the cash from almost half their nation's ATM machines, Greeks on Monday morning found their stock exchange and banks CLOSED and their accounts inaccessible (except for €60 per day ATM withdrawal starting Tuesday). Greece may have just reached the breaking point to which we are headed in the U.S. – a once-free market nation where banks are now required to report you to the government for making any unusual withdrawal; where banks may now refuse to let you withdraw your account in cash; and where carrying more than a small amount of cash might lead to government confiscation of your money via asset forfeiture laws. [more...]

The U.S. Dollar vs. the Euro

By Michelle Seiler-Tucker

The recession of 2008 greatly impacted economies across the world. In the seven years following the crash, markets lifted themselves back towards prosperity with varying degrees of success. One of the fastest recovering globally significant economies is that of the United States, and while there still remains years of work, we are faring much better than certain European counterparts. One of the hardest hit and slowest to recover is Greece, which is an anchor weighing down the recovery of the euro zone. As a result of the United States’ success and Europe’s sluggishness, the U.S. dollar is rallying against the euro, coming within a few cents of parity. [more...]

CASH AND CARRY - It is Now Against the Law to "Almost" Break the Law

By Lowell Ponte

How much cash can you now withdraw from your bank and carry in America without risk of being arrested, or of having your assets seized, merely for possessing money in this liquid form? The ominous answer is that carrying even one dollar in cash might give the government a pretext for such actions. Once upon a time, this question usually mattered only at the border. People were required to declare if they were carrying more than $10,000 in cash or negotiable instruments when entering or leaving the United States.  Failure to make a truthful declaration to U.S. Customs can result in the forfeiture of the money a person is carrying. Today, because of anti-racketeering RICO statutes and the 2001 Patriot Act, your bank is required to notify the federal government if you deposit or withdraw $10,000 or more in cash. In effect, your bank is required to spy on your financial life in this way for the government. [more...]

Trust, Verify and Diversify

By Michelle Seiler-Tucker

One way to avoid losing money is to diversify, and not just in the type of stocks you own. I am invested in the stock market, real estate, and many different businesses. Even within my different investments, I maintain diversity. Whether you choose to invest in yourself through your business or in the market through an advisor, be sure to trust but verify. You should be able to have complete confidence in either your advisor’s expertise or in your own knowledge about the workings of your business. After all, the only way to combat uncertainty in your investments is to have a good understanding of your markets and spread out your assets. All routes of investment have great potential for success, but no one investment is worth the risk of losing everything, however lucrative it may seem. I detail more pertinent business tactics in my award winning and best-selling book, "Sell Your Business For More Than It's Worth." [more...]

Our "Flash Crash" Economy

By Lowell Ponte

On May 6, 2010, the New York Stock Exchange suffered what came to be called the "Flash Crash," when the Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted unexpectedly by nearly 1,000 points in only minutes. A single Sell order valued at approximately $4.1 billion purportedly set off a cascade of computerized buy-and-sell programs around the world that are designed to respond immediately, and without consulting human beings, to key changes in market prices. As each major trading computer reacted, it could have triggered programmed reactions in similar computers. Some want to believe that enough circuit breakers have been added to stock trading to prevent an economy-shattering crash like the one that cost traders more than a trillion dollars in only a few minutes five years ago. But a violent sell-off in stocks on February 29, 2012 was in its own way even more frightening – because evidence suggests that it was driven by a powerful intelligence that was not human. [more...]

The April Jobs Report is a Bernie Madoff-Like Scam

By Wayne Allyn Root

What Obama is doing to the economy, jobs, free markets, capitalism, and the greatest middle class in world history is a crime so vile it makes Bernie Madoff look like a small-time, amateur pickpocket.

The economy is a disastrous mess. But you wouldn't know it from the headlines released by the mainstream media. For instance, take the jobs report that came out on Friday. This could be the biggest case of fraud and misrepresentation since Obamacare. Let's pick Friday's jobs report apart, piece by piece. [more...]