Farmer Diaries

Several weeks ago, during a heated discussion on oil prices a good friend told me:  "You believe that oil prices are going down, put your money where you mouth is" The bet was for oil to hit $30 before it would hit $50.  That bet -- was a sucker bet.  The marginal market is unknowable.  That's simply the truth is that one serious global event and oil prices can jump back to $80.  What is more interesting is where will oil be in 24 or 48 months.  Will it remain as cheap as today. There are a number of factors at play: Producers the world over have gotten use to the $80/100 bbl economic windfall; enabling them to buy off their citizen -- from Caracas to  Ryad the plan has been "buy off the natives" US producers of expensive shall gas and oil have used "expensive" debt to fund their development.  Sunk costs are sunk!  Right now they are pumping as much as they can so that they can meet interest payments.  But soon even variable...

So Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission has finally closed its books and the Canadian government has decided to apply all 72 recommendations.  Fine as it stands, the Residential Schools were traumatic. The issue today is where does Canada go from here?  What is to be done about the Aboriginal problem, because its an C$ 8 billion per annum cost.  What are the solutions? First, some hard truths, if you are an Amerindian in Canada you have two choices; live a coddled and largely pointless life on a "reservation" pay no taxes and receive benefits.  Education, despite being expensive, is widely seen as completely useless.  Children leave school with little useful knowledge or socially (outside the reservation) useful skills.  If you are smart -- you get out as fast as you can. My experience, at McGil University years ago, where I met a single AmerIndian was telling, smarter than most, engaged and had little time for his tribe.  He was out i...

Oil are now lower than at any time since 2009!  That's going to cause serious trouble in America's oil patch (not that things are going to be that great for Saudi or Venezuela for that matter.  The shift from a few to many (lower oil prices benefit many while high prices benefit the few, is a massive transfer of wealth. The Saudi royals have been "buying off" their country men with the windfall of expensive energy.  Now they have to liquidate their holdings...that could hurt stock prices.  In america, nearly 50% of all junk bonds (High Yield bonds) are issued by oil & gas companies drilling expensive shall gas and oil.  So far they've been buying time with massive increase in flows, but that cannot keep up. Interesting times

Every day another nut-job professes his desire to "kill" Syrian refugee "in Paris" as if that's where they were... The most amazing thing, of course, is that America has seen these kind of commentaries before, many many times in the past -- at the turn of the century it was the Irish and before them the Jews.  Although historically America has welcomed the poor --that have served it so well, today the behavior of most Americans remains appalling.  Obama is proposing bringing 10,000 refugees to America, that compares to nearly 25,000 before Christmas in Canada, and tens of thousands in Europe.  Recent polls show that 72% of Republicans believe that the values of Islam are at odds with American values, for the Democrats the number is 48%.  There are many similarity between the Christian and Islamic faiths; neither are totally comfortable with secular governments, but Christians made (mostly) their peace with the separation of Church and State.  As for the place o...

Now that's a great headline.  This morning the latest poll, just 12 weeks ahead of the first primary races in New Hampshire and Iowa (its getting serious now) show that The Donald (TM) is now leading the field with 35% support of primary voters -- in Iowa Carson is still #2, but with the bad press -- he ran as an "honest guy" who turns out has lied about his entire life... is really toast. Things are unchanged in the Dems field, HC is still well ahead of Sanders.   The Donald continues "outrageous statements" is a non-stop spin machine.  He now suggest that the US and its friends should "Kill the families of terrorists".  Now I don't condone terrorism in any way shape or form, but history has shown that "Freedom fighter" and "Terrorists" can easily be confused -- depending on your side of the argument.  If you are a surviving member of a Yemeni wedding party that was bombed "in error" by a predator drone -- y...

So despite all the BS news over the past few months, if you had bought the S&P500 or the DJ industrial you would have assumed that 2015 was a very quiet year for investors -- the S&P started at 2020 and today is trading around 2100, a 3.9% increase and if you add your dividend (a whole 1.9%) you are looking at total revenues of 5.8% -- before tax not too shabby and certainly better than what a bank deposit will give you.  In a nut shell 2015 has been a good year for investors, at least better than for depositors. So what about 2016?  One of my very favorite commentators is Bob Janjuah -- an old colleague with tons of street smarts.  He's the voice of reason and a very good macro commentator.  He was long the whole year and told his clients to stay the course -- if not increase position when the market soften. He's now gone full bear told his investors to liquidate their positions in September on the often heard rumor that the feds were going to raise...