As far as finance
and business goes, at least one rule generally holds true
And this rule
makes your job as an investor, entrepreneur or analyst ten times
easier. The rule? If you cant explain a particular investment
or innovation to an eleven-year-old, then something shady is going
on.
Credit Default
Swaps, Securitization, GSEs, CDOs all of these things were
considered financial wizardry back in the bubble days.
Now theyve been exposed as little more than Wall Streets
version of three-card Monte.
But the card
sharks behind these scams not the individual investment banks
on the frontline, but the huckster who put his seal of approval
on these street-side swindlings the guy whose rate-setting
mandates created the environment for these bubble shenanigans that
yahoo is still at large, and no one in the government really seems
to care.
No one; that
is, except for a rogue Texan. A man who wont settle for anything
less than the America he was promised in the constitution
The Doctor is In
Most of us
grew familiar with Ron Paul in late 2007 and early 08. He
campaigned on a platform of smaller government; specifically by
means of eradicating the Fed and the Internal Revenue Service a
platform that turned out to be just a few months early.
But our Resident
Offshore Expert Former Congressman Bob Bauman knew
Ron from their days together in the House. As you might expect,
Bob says the soft-spoken doctor is a kind man one who definitely
talks the talk in addition to walking the walk.
And beyond
that, Rons surely no average politician.
No, he actually
serves a practical purpose within his community imagine that.
Hes a doctor. An obstetrician, which has proven to be a bit
of a roadblock for his less useful competition
I had
real difficulty down in Brazoria County, where he practiced, because
he'd delivered half the babies in the county. There were only two
obstetricians in the county, and the other one was his partner.
That was a
competitor Gammage talking about one of Pauls
first campaigns that came in the wake of the Watergate scandal.
It shouldve been a pushover for the Democrats. In hindsight,
Gammage realized that he underestimated the grass roots pull that
Ron Paul had amongst his constituents.
Since then,
Rons been an established fringe voice in Congress. His message,
steeped in fiscal common sense and Austrian school economics, has
grown more popular over the years, culminating in his run at the
2008 primaries.
But Ron was
still too much of a dark horse.
And the Republican
Party couldnt decide whether they wanted the guy from New
York that cheated on his wife or the guy from Arizona that
got engaged to his current wife while married to his previous wife.
Decisions, decisions.