Keep Your Balance If You Can

Going forward, running a restaurant will be much tougher. This winter and spring, farmers will be facing increased costs to produce a crop. The businesses that process raw materials into the foods sold at markets will face increased costs (labor, power, taxes, insurance, etc.) Retailers are releasing news of anticipated price increases to begin in January. If you are running a restaurant, your fixed costs each month will continue to rise. You can try to pass those costs on to your patrons, accept a reduced margin or try to do a mix of the two to find a balance. It’s going to be a balancing act. “We certainly don’t expect prices to go back to five- or 10-year averages,” said Carlos Mera, head of agri commodities market research at Rabobank. That’s partly due to a “floor” on global price rises: With fertilizer and other input costs increasing, farmers’ costs, too, are climbing. Meanwhile, increased hedging and building stocks to cushion the impact of now-familiar supply shocks is also pushing up demand." Thanks Federal Reserve pinheads, ass-clown Democrats (and their minions of useful idiots) who orchestrated this mess so that they could remove the Bad Orange Man and "save the world for democracy". I am prepared. A lot of people who don’t follow this bullshit are not and will suffer. Some will have it coming. If I see some fat ass clown on the news who is the poster boy or girl for “straight Democratic ticket mail in voter” bemoaning the fact that his or her rent is going up, their grocery bill just went up, their utilities are costing more, etc., etc., etc. I’m going to say to my television, “My heart pumps purple piss for you.”

BTFD is becoming STFU

A lot of retail investors and stock market novices have done well in 2021 by following a simple formula called "BTFD" (buy the fucking dip). As of this past quarter, insider selling has picked up the pace. Insiders have been strategically selling into a hot market and reaping large payoffs. The pace of selling has been high enough to keep prices high without flooding the market with discounts and triggering an avalanche. From CNBC: “CEOs and corporate insiders have sold a record $69 billion in stock in 2021, as looming tax hikes and lofty share prices encourage many to take profits. As of Monday, sales by insiders are up 30% from 2020 to $69 billion, and up 79% versus a 10-year average, according to InsiderScore/Verity. The selling is likely to increase even more as December is often an active month for sales due to tax planning.” The wealthy and well connected are keeping the frog in the pot of water while gradually turning up the heat. Before the frog knows what’s going on, the water will be a bubbling cauldron. The Fed has been fairly transparent about their short term intentions by stating that QE is ending faster than originally anticipated and that they are planning three interest rate hikes in 2022. The only reason that they are doing so is because inflation is far higher than they will admit; they’ve let the genie out of the bottle and the world is watching as the dollar’s reign as the world’s reserve currency just moved much closer to midnight on the financial doomsday clock. It won’t be enough to stop the inflation freight train. Their actions will be too timid – it will be the second coming of Arthur Burns (the Chairman under Nixon and Ford). Jerome Powell is no Volcker. He is a Burns. Translation: he’s a pussy and he’s surrounded by nitwits like wild eyed Neel “Cash ‘n’ Carry” Kashkari. That was evident during his time under Trump. He’s weak – until a Volker type is installed at the Fed, you’ll continue to see escalating prices for the everyday things you buy. Recently, I sold a chainsaw to a farmer who was telling me that his costs for the upcoming growing season will be higher. Input costs like fertilizer, seed, fuel, etc. will all be higher in 2022 when he starts planting in the spring. Who do you think is going to pay for those increases down the line, cupcake? BTFD is being replaced by STFU – my own abbreviation for the phrase for “Sell The Fucking Upside”.

It's a Perfect Day

A friend and I were chatting via text recently and I remarked that she was somewhat “rough” on humans and a complete pushover for doggies – also, I’m somewhat guilty of that as I’ve bent over backward at times for my best pal and can be a little on the “brusque” side when considering humans. She explained her rationale that, unlike a human being, a dog will never “ghost” his or her owner. They’ll never disappear on you – not until they’re called upon by nature to do so. If anything, you can’t get rid of them even for a few minutes when you need a little time for yourself. No matter, if you leave and come back for a brief time, they don’t care – they are happy you’re back and the moment is good. To use a Lou Reed lyric, it’s a perfect day. (And no, Lou Reed’s song “Perfect Day” is not a love song to heroin – it’s a love song about a girl. His own words in an interview given before his death said as much. Look it up.) Your dog is a little like a human in that he or she will use you to get what he or she needs or wants from you at that moment. Unlike a human, your dog is pretty fucking transparent about the whole affair. They wear their emotions on their furry sleeves for the entire world to see. If a dog loves you, you’ll know it. If a dog hates you, you’ll know it. If a dog is indifferent to you, you’ll know that too. You’ll always know where you stand. If your dog loves you, the blind loyalty given you is a rarity in this world. Even when you are clearly guilty, your dog will believe in your innocence and will gladly tell the world to go fuck itself in your defense. I think that is what endears them to people so much. I recognize it in my own dog. When he works his ass off trailing a running bird and then points the pheasant and I move in to flush the bird and then completely blow a slam dunk, going away shot in an open field at 25 yards, I lower my head and recognize that I should really do more practice on the sporting clays range. I apologize to him and he shrugs as if to say, “No worries, Pal. I’ll find another and that piece of shit gun of yours will fire correctly and then we’ll have us a dead pheasant. It’s all good”. It’s my own fault, I know it but he finds excuses for me.

Is It Just Me or Is Anyone Else Sick of Seeing This Fucking Garden Gnome in the News?

Good God, please just go the fuck away already.

Partying Like It's 1999

Banks and credit unions have a rainy day fund known as the loan loss reserve account. In short, there is a formula that is to be followed where a portion of current income is set aside to cover the potential losses anticipated from loans that are "going South". The Fed managed to create an "Alice in Wonderland" landscape where up is down, North is South, right is wrong and wrong is right. It's difficult predict what will happen in the future when the Fed is monkeying around with fundamentals of today. Giving the Fed these kinds of powers is to invite a clusterfuck. Think of giving a chimpanzee a loaded handgun or allowing a retarded child to man the controls of a landing 747 jumbo jet loaded with people. Anyway, banks and credit unions have been depleting their loan loss reserve accounts as people who should have defaulted two years ago on stupid loans did not - Fed and government intervention propped up the zombies for 2 years and now, the Fed is running out of juice. Fucking around with the price of credit has consequences when you have an economy that runs on credit.

Make no mistake - the Fed Governors (like crazy eyed Neel Kashkari) actually believe their bullshit and they'd like you to believe it too. Don't worry about the rising cost of everyday items that you need to live, lemming. You're all gonna be nigga rich with stocks to the moon and a gold mine for a house and you'll accomplish all of this prosperity by sitting on your ass and being a great fucking American. My old employer, the fabulous Together Credit Union (who the fuck came up with that name during the re-branding?) has depleted their loan loss allowance account year over year as follows: Loan Loss Allowance Q3 2021 vs Q3 2020 $11.4MM $14.3MM $3 million to party on and make acquisitions with in the space of a year. Good luck next year assclowns as the court cases pile up.

If You're Going To Be Stupid, You Had Better Be Tough

'Woke' retailers who asked Congress for help amid smash-and-grabs supported left-wing police reforms Nearly two dozen CEOs signed the letter asking Congress for support, including the chiefs of Target, Nordstrom and Levi Strauss Arizona Rep. Paul Gosar also said he will not support congressional efforts to assist retailers that "backed BLM during their ‘summer of love protests’ and efforts to defund the police." "These woke companies made their bed, now they can sleep in it," he told Fox News on Wednesday. "This is what happens to the woke, they reap what they sow. What did they expect would happen?" Police leaders have voiced similar sentiments, saying corporate leaders rushed to make donations in 2020 out of fear of being labeled racist and are now coping will the fallout of fewer officers and more crime. "Unfortunately, the result of these defund efforts has these CEOs waking up to a retail theft smash and grab nightmare, rampant violence on our streets and a fear of disassociating themselves and their companies from the very individuals and organizations intent on destroying the safety of our communities," Pritchard added in his comments to Fox News. So, personally I find this comical for a couple of reasons. The first is a story about my own first born. I am told that as a young adult, her blind faith in the story of Michael Brown and her willingness to participate in a bullshit “peaceful protest march for justice” during the whole “Michael Brown was unjustly shot and killed by a white and racist cop in a St. Louis suburb” narrative cost her a car break-in and the theft of her laptop. I remember her as book smart, cunning, arrogant, willful, untrustworthy young woman and an overall assclown. Raising her was no fun at all and I rejoice every day that it is over and I will never have to be around such a terrible child. I was cursed to have such a daughter. Anyway, I was told by a third party that while marching in solidarity with her “brothers and sisters”, her car was broken into and her laptop computer was liberated by some “underprivileged youths”. I just had to laugh out loud. You have to understand that this is a daughter who I became estranged from after her underserved contempt for me became too much to bear. The other story is about serving jury duty while a resident of Saint Louis City. If you are a guy who doesn’t have a criminal record, registered to vote and who is not a transient and who is a resident of the Great City of Saint Louis (translation: a regular law-abiding dude who has a job and pays his taxes and owns a home there) then you are a rarity in the wonderful City of Saint Louis as most of the residents are complete wastes of skin who look as if they recently escaped from either jail or the circus freak show. Make no mistake – it is a city that sucks ass where residency is concerned. So, eligible (translation: normal) residents are routinely asked to serve jury duty. While a resident there, I did twice. Of all of the places I’ve lived, I’ve only been asked to serve on a jury while a resident of that crime ridden hell-hole. But then again, it is the only city I’ve lived in as an adult that had a large part of the population made up of the precious people-of-color so, go figure. Anyway, one case involved a low class white woman who was shacked-up with her black boyfriend in a home not too terribly far from my own neighborhood. The two began drinking one night (nothing unusual about that in Saint Louis City as most of the residents are addicted to alcohol and/or drugs) and the black boyfriend decided it would be fun to invite one of his homeboys over. Now, the white woman and two black dudes are drinking and making merry. Next comes the proposal for a three way - naturally. Well now the white woman is undressed and getting fucked in ways she’s only dreamed about but things get ugly (gee, who would have thought it, right?) and she’s getting bitten on her tits and she’s got two black dicks stuffed up her ass and she’s having some second thoughts. It ends with her naked, bitten, bleeding and screaming for help at her neighbor’s place. The cops arrive (surely all racist, card-carrying Nazis and white supremacists) and round up the suspects who are then soon to be facing judge and jury. Well, we did our duty and threw the spade in jail where he belonged for rape and some other charges but as a jury, we all looked at one another and thought, “Where the hell did you think this was going to lead, you dumb bitch?” when considering the testimony of the white woman who loved black dick too much.

Fed Ending Supports, Moratoriums Over, Rising Rents, Rising Inflation. 2022 Will Be Interesting.

"According to the latest data from the Eviction Lab at Princeton University, evictions have been rising in most of the 31 cities and six states where it collects data. Evictions in September increased 10.4% from August. October numbers were 38% above August levels and 25% higher than in September. Filings fell around 7% from October to November and now remain nearly 48% below pre-pandemic levels." I suspect that this number will grow. No one wants to foreclose or evict during the Christmas season. It's bad optics. Don’t get me wrong. I do feel some sympathy for these people. Being evicted and losing one’s home is a traumatic event for people and some never recover from the experience. On the other hand, what is conveniently omitted from these types of stories of rising evictions is the fact that many of these same people collected thousands of dollars during the “pandemic” as a result of the expanded unemployment benefits that were given them – let’s not forget that many of these people collected more money being unemployed than they made while working at their jobs. They also enjoyed a backside benefit in the way of eviction moratoriums whereby landlords were left holding the bag while tenants were allowed to live rent free in their apartments, houses, etc. The government completely screwed the pooch by giving the renters the upper hand in being able to “squat”.

Evictions take time to work their way through the courts. Foreclosures take even longer. In the long run, the only real winners in this fiasco will be the lawyers and court staff. "There was a batch of initial commentary coming out when the moratorium ended and the tone ... was, well, there wasn’t a tsunami so we don’t have an eviction crisis on our hands,” said Ben Martin, senior researcher at Texas Housers, a nonprofit focused on housing issues. “That initial narrative was somewhat misleading. What we are seeing is a reflection of reality, which is that evictions take time to work their way into and through the court system.” “We have so much more work to do,” U.S. Rep. Cori Bush, a St. Louis Democrat, said, citing data showing that evictions during the pandemic “have taken lives.” There are some states and local governments that “feel, ‘We don’t want this money. We don’t want this federal aid," she said. "And, we have some landlords who say that they don’t want the money as well. So that makes it harder for the money to be dispersed.” What Cori Bush does not understand is that landlords do not want to continue to house a tenant who would gladly accept public funding and protection from eviction for nearly two years while thumbing their nose at their landlord when rent was due. Under no set of circumstances do they want to continue to deal with their current tenants. I wouldn’t. And, in the current environment where I could finally get rid of my deadbeat, fix up my apartment or house or condo and raise the rent 40% for a new and properly vetted tenant, I would do so in a heartbeat.