I Need My Rose Colored Glasses. . . .

I was in a discussion today with someone who wanted me to invest in a particular set of stocks because it was a "sure thing". Well, if I were to invest, I would be doing so at the local grocery store or hardware store. My discretionary income is not discretionary.

What got me to thinking though, was the rosy picture he painted for me. How Obysmal had turned things around and we were going to be just fine now. In this particular persons case, I allowed for diminished capacity but realized that the left as a whole could be suffering from the same malady.

Painting a bright picture of the near future for your client is tantamount to fraud. At the very least, it should be considered malpractice. Looking at the bright side, or finding a silver lining in all of this is just great and believing the cup is half full is a fine philosophy when it comes to your vegetable garden or American Idol; however, reality says the cup is empty and just doesn't know it yet.

Reality says "they" are lying to you. "They" don't want a panic so "they" are painting a rosy pic of recovery.

If you believe the rosy picture, I have a bridge for sale. keep watching MSNBC or ABC or whatever zombie network you want, read the New York Times and you'll be happy till the end. Empty rhetoric and posturing will not erase the truth.

The housing bubble is not done bursting. It will implode big time shortly. High end mortgages are defaulting at an alarming rate and the subprime debacle is not over by a far piece. Commercial mortgages look like a massacre.

Much more bloodshed in 2010 and 2011 with Alt-A and Option ARM resets just around the corner. With plummeting real-estate values, this leaves many if not most of these under water or upside down in the extreme. A clear recipe for disaster on top of disaster.

Add to that, real or honest unemployment figures are near 20% (they may be over 20% at this writing) and still rising, no sign of slowing. State and federal services are being slashed nationwide. The "flu" is coming.

So, I say, they lie! They cover up. They plot and plan for a disaster beyond our current imagination. All of a sudden it is not so far fetched to believe that they do not have your best interests at heart.

The dollar has been artificially held up and is now dropping. China is divesting itself of dollars as surreptitiously (they lose in a panic) as possible and and may now eclipse India as a gold hoarder.

Inflation is sneaking up on us even as I write this. If you have money in in the market, I wouldn't, but if you do, If you're waiting to cash out, I would not wait much longer.

And don't even get me started on oil.

Right now we are living in a tinder box and all it will take is one spark to produce a raging fire that will burn the entire house down.

As for the "National Guard" needing Corrections Officer positions filled, well yes, they do. The part that bothers me is that there are not supposed to be any Internment/Resettlement camps in this country. What are they for?

I guess a Corrections Officer job listing would not have raised any flags with us. That is "We the People". But a - Corrections Officer - Internment/Resettlement Specialist, Now that raises the hackles on the back of my neck.

My advice, get ready for a healthy dose of reality.