California's Extreme #Wildfires Raging Beyond Control?

'This is extreme': Wildfires strike early, hard in Southern California

By Greg Botelho, Michael Martinez, and Paul Vercammen

Carlsbad, California (CNN) – Thousands of homes, a university campus, a nuclear plant, a Legoland and parts of one of the military's biggest and busiest bases: All have been evacuated due to a rare confluence of fast-moving wildfires scorching Southern California. 

Cal Fire Division Chief Dave Allen said nine fires have burned 9,095 acres.

The Golden State has seen many such blazes before. But these are different because they sprung up so quickly, spread so fast, and hit months before the traditional height of wildfire season, making them menacing in the short- and long-term. 

CNN meteorologist Jennifer Gray forecasts what the area might expect as the summer gives way to fall: "This is only going to get worse."

San Diego County district supervisor Bill Horn said Wednesday evening that eight fires were burning in the region, seven of which popped up that day. 


Investigators haven't yet determined the cause of these fires. But Horn hasn't seen anything like this -- so many fires, so quick, all of them separate -- in at least 20 years. That this is happening in May, not July or October, is even more confounding to him. 

"I'm sure it could be by chance," the clearly skeptical supervisor said. "… I just think there's too much of a coincidence here." […] 

Carlsbad alone has issued 23,000 evacuation notices. Thousands of students won't have classes on Thursday due to the continuing threat; California State University-San Marcos canceled all activities through Friday, including commencement. Numerous roads have been shut down, while others have become clogged with people trying to escape. […] 

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Doc's Comments:

 

This is very early in the season so the road ahead is not promising. Add on to this that the state faces the worst drought in decades. Could they run out of water? Then there's that radioactive water coming from Japan - all too scary and frightening.

 

Dr. Peter G Kinesa

May 19, 2014

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The Jim Rogers Blog 

 War in Syria Commodity Prices go to Moon? 

Does this mean we should land on the moon again for bargains? Folks could be waiting there right now looking for our business. Who, we wonder?

Commodity prices are ready to shoot upwards whether there is a war in Syria or any big event somewhere else on the planet. Syria is somewhat irrelevant in this regard as markets are poised more on fundamentals to lift skyward.

The world is more fragile today than it was twenty years ago for obvious reasons. More people, fewer resources and wider geo-political tensions and instability. For more worries you may add in climate change, wildfires, water supplies and worst - fewer and fewer pollinating bugs. And that's the war we are really losing sleep over.

Bottom Line: Anyday, anything, or anytime - LIFT OFF ALICE!

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First Financial Insights

August 24, 2013

To the Moon...

The Jim Rogers Blog

Financial Calamity - US Dollar Collapse? 
(Read and Hear More)

Just cannot see eye to eye with Jim on the collapse of the US dollar, albeit the financial calamity is more or less a hangover from the 2008 Meltdown and remains plausible. Indeed we had  forecasted such a collapse two years back, by 2020. Bonds yes; but a currency short is fraught with too many pitfalls.

There are many reasons behind the likely stability embedded in the US dollar in such times. Two are big ones. One,  it will simply win by default because other currencies that are competitive, in any significant way, should be that much worse off in the turbulent economic times ahead. Remember, the US is a Hegemony with about 60 -70% of the world's resources and economies within its influences and/or control. There is little else in terms of a viable surrogate exchange media that could handle the global financial volume and liquidity needs as well. Former communist countries have huge credibility issues to overcome to garner any trust for this role.

But most importantly - they have bigger GUNS! In the end, that may be all that matters. 

PLATINUM WEALTH PARTNERS

First Financial Insights

August 22, 2013 

Pentagon 2020 Outlook:

 Continues to See Strong US Dollar

Faber Buys #Sprott - Is On-Going Disclosure Required? 

(Read More)

"BUY GOLD???"

While we have long held a position that in the long-run there is no legitimate or logical reason based on sequential forward events, and both historical asset-class performance and purchasing power losses over the past thirty-three years to own this object, yet this psychotic placebo continues to attract the attention of speculators.  Nouriel Roubini had candidly referred to it as a "barbaric relic" - his kind diplomacy is respected. 

So why do promoters such as Dr Doom continue with there promotions despite all this? We can presume that they understand the psychosis of small investors attracted to such a cure all placebo and operate to take advantage of their fantasy. The above purchase of Sprott affirms the possibility of such a tactic by promoters. 

But the most important issue is not whether to buy or sell this object - the real issue is disclosure. That is will the promoters advise the public of subsequent sales before they are effected or will they cleverly front-run them in various de facto forms ahead of small investors, underneath the radar of a complex myriad of international rules, laws and regulations?

Funny thing, we really don't expect  answers to these questions any time soon.

PLATINUM WEALTH PARTNERS

First Financial Insights 

August 20, 2013  

Just Keeping them ... 

 

JAPAN-- What if the water becomes contaminated?

JAPAN -- What if the water becomes contaminated? (read more - The New York Times)

What? Their water is radioactive?

Not just a passing concern nor high speculation, but a possibility that can be assigned some level of probability. Perhaps something you would not normally be concerned with when thinking about markets, however a wide-scale disaster of this sort could cause an unprecedented collapse in Japanese securities' markets. The nature of this disaster could make significant portions of the island nation just unlivable.

Anyway we remain skeptical about what authorities are disclosing and this lack of transparency,promptness and accuracy does not create a lot of confidence in competencies. We are assigning much higher levels of risk because we fear the unknown, unknowns that could emerge out of nowhere. Try to explain to clients why you didn't see this one coming,

Anyway, for sure, we are staying away from coastal properties as long-term investments. To be forewarned, is to be forearmed - invest wisely.

Dr Peter G Kinesa

July 27, 2013

ITS OK TO BE SMART

What's UP with Inflation?

What's UP with Inflation?

There is little doubt that the debate about how to calculate inflation will rage forever - and governments will always manipulate this calculation - and economists and bond markets seem to put the faith of the universe in this completely subjective and arbitrary number's calculation. Why? It is politically convenient - and as long as everyone believes it is the truth; perceptions are then realities, regardless.

So for the most part, we are cynical about this number but do our own calculations based on hard and soft commodity prices (ex-gold,) - because these are the driving inputs of the global economic machine and the numbers are less affected by political allocations and influences. It also ignores the value-added and services included in the CPI, as these items will be less relevant as resource scarcities take hold down the road.Without inputs, there are no outputs - that simple.

In the end, no method is without flaws, but it makes a whole a lot of sense to first, do your own rough calculations and to secondly, calculate the inflation numbers for economic inputs and as well as traditional outputs (CPI),  if you want to minimize the chances of being blind-sided by the Bond market.

One other secret -  preform these calculations based on geo-political regions and include population growth and hard and soft commodity reserves. Then the picture becomes a whole lot clearer. Then you can say to me the next time we meet...

What's up Doc?

Dr Peter G Kinesa

July 25, 2013

What we do not know - Can blind-side us!