Gold Gets Attitude Adjustment On Hot PPI Number

The monthly change in PPI came in hot this morning at 8:30 with core PPI at .4% versus an expected .2% and PPI at .3% versus the same .2% expected.

The NY open hit gold on light volume.

Stocks rose on a 'surprisingly strong' retail sales number of .8% versus .2% expected.

Gold Daily and Silver Weekly Charts - Zzzzzz

Europe is on vacation, and all but the hard core momentum traders are on strike in the US.

SP 500 and NDX Futures Daily Charts

Sleepy day, stocks and commodities shoved around the plate.

Bill Black Educates the Media On the Nature of Financial Fraud, With Little Apparent Effect

Although I linked to this last week, I thought I would like to feature it today.

In one of his rare appearances on the 'mainstream media' Bill Black educates the CNBC news anchor Maria Bartiromo and news contributor Bethany Maclean on the nature of financial fraud.

It is interesting to see the NBC news people acting as apologists for the financial powers, trotting out false arguments and talking over or rushing past the facts when they are presented. At least Bloomberg is more straightforward in their presentation of blatant hucksterism, making little pretense to journalism or presenting any other side of the Wall Street story. They are salespeople and spokesmodels for the financial industry and the monied interests.

Just putting a letter or two in front of a storied call sign, as in the case of MSNBC and CNBC, does not protect that brand from the tarnish of increasingly low standards and future scandal. All of the major media seems to be dancing to Rupert's pied piper's tune.

As storied NBC news anchor David Brinkley once said:

"Being an anchor is not just a matter of sitting in front of a camera and looking pretty."

"News is what somebody somewhere wants to suppress; all the rest is advertising." Lord Northcliffe