Slope of Hope Blog Posts

Slope initially began as a blog, so this is where most of the website’s content resides. Here we have tens of thousands of posts dating back over a decade. These are listed in reverse chronological order. Click on any category icon below to see posts tagged with that particular subject, or click on a word in the category cloud on the right side of the screen for more specific choices.

Fed Jawbones Mean Business

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3 month T-bill yield is demanding the Fed raise the Funds rate

And the Fed is listening.

Yesterday I made a sarcasm-tinged post about the parade of Fed jawbones in the media and the coordinated and thus comical desperation they seem to exhibit. The stern message is that the Fed Funds rate could be raised at any time (which is possible even before the next FOMC meeting on March 16, in my opinion).

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The Lords of Easy Money

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lords

To be honest, I’m not quite sure why I’m doing a review of a book I didn’t like, but perhaps I can save you the trouble. The book in question is one whose title suggested I would absolutely love it, which is The Lords of Easy Money, and ostensibly it is about how the Federal Reserve has caused the grotesque maldistribution of wealth in the country. I’m a bit confounded at the 4.6 stars out of 5 on Amazon, as well as the fact that it is selling so well, because I was sorely disappointed, even though I really wanted to like it.

The book itself is over 300 pages, but I polished it off in a couple of sittings. As a writer myself, it was easy for me to see what the author was up to – – trying to take a relatively dry subject and turn it into something dramatic. I kept thinking to myself, “I hope my writing doesn’t come off this way.” It was awkward.

The main beef with the book is that I didn’t learn a damned thing. It was largely a narrative about personalities – – Hoenig and Powell, mostly – – whereas I was hoping for a scientific, fact-based analysis of the harm the Fed has caused. I regret highlighting the book (a habit I’ve never shaken) since now I can’t return it for a refund. Sorry, but yuck.

Is That ALL?

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Well, THAT was weak.

This has got to be the only morning in history where I’m disappointed to see the ES down 80 points. I mean, don’t get me wrong; 27 out of 28 positions are bearish. But still, what would have made this easiest would have been a strong bounce up to 4460 and then I would Get The Hell Out of my one long position and enjoy the ride down. As it is now, I actually have to think. The hearty bounce below is already half gone, and there’s still an hour to go even before the opening bell as I’m typing this. Sheesh.

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