Trash Vegas: Oceanfront Property?

As the absurd property bubble rages on, AG sent a link to this article: "Tiny Vegas Home Sits At Center of Housing Craze."

Hilarious lines from the article include:

"About 85 percent of condo buyers are non-Nevada residents or investors, Gordon said."

“It’s sort of like beach-front property. They’re not making any more of it. Everybody that’s within a stone’s throw thinks their property is worth $20 million an acre,” he said.

“It’s happening. It’s all going to keep going,” said Paul Miotke, Corchuelo’s agent. “The one thing we know is it’s not going down in value.”

Lessons from this:

1. The run-up in prices in Las Vegas is largely speculative.
2. Everyone's now a real estate tycoon.
2. Vegas is beachfront property.
3. Paul Miotke has no idea what he's talking about.
4. I have several options on condos on the Strip for sale if any of you are interested.

Full disclosure: It must be said that a certain part of my personal fortune is heavily dependent on the real estate bubble, so I'm not exactly standing on the sidelines as a spectator. I'm intimately involved in the process in California and I spend a lot of time working with land developers. There's an obscene building and selling frenzy -- let's put it that way.

Flowers

In the process of ordering some flowers to be sent a special lady, I discovered you can set up your account to automatically deliver flowers to the women of your choice each month (or week!). That's perfect! Since all my bills are paid in a similar fashion (I never even look at them anymore), now I can step up my game with the gifts for the ladies! With my ex-girlfriend, I'd bring her a flower EVERY time I saw her, plus dozens of roses each month, requiring me to stop by the flower shop all the time. Technology makes romance so much easier!

QUOTE: "Q, it's not about how many women you get, it's about which women you get." -- LJ

CLOSE ENCOUNTER WITH DOLPHINS I did a 3-mile ocean swim Saturday morning off the coast of Santa Monica (accompanied by my faithful friend in her kayak) in preparation for the next big endeavour. After hearing a number of high-pitched sounds underwater, I looked off to my right and swimming along were about 15 dolphins. They buzzed the kayak and came within about 2 feet. I think they were welcoming us to their world.

BERNANKE The best libertarians could hope for?

Ugh.

Bernanke knows his economics history? (Big deal) Favors inflation-targeting? (Heh, even if you convinced me inflation-targeting was a possibility, I'd still laugh. It's just econ-geek nonsense, having no relation to the real world. We call this "f(x) bullsh*t" where I come from. Besides, I favor falling prices.)

Hell, who cares if Bernanke is perfect in his economic reasoning, a true follower of Mises-Rothbard-Hulsmann, the Federal Reserve is NOT an economic institution. It's a political one. The Fed Chair is merely the steward, doing the bidding of the banking elite and the State to prevent the insolvency of our monetary system. It's a fraud, a scam and the primary ingredient of the rise of the welfare-warfare State. Printing money -- even at a medium pace and all that -- doesn't benefit society. It impoverishes society.

On top of all this, Bernanke is on-the-record as willing to do ANYTHING in his power -- which I suppose includes buying up mortgage-backed securities after the collapse -- in order to prevent prices from falling! For the libertarian, a massive deflation could mean the end of the political-economic order as we know it. We should welcome the day.

I have absolutely no idea why a radical libertarian would cheer this -- or any -- appointment to the Fed.

Charles de Montesquieu (as quoted by Tolstoy) said: "I love peasants and farmers; they are not scholarly enough of educated enough to tell sophisticated lies."

I don't like these so-called economists and economic policymakers. They excel at telling sophisticated lies. Stop showing them support.

WORLD SERIES OF POKER In my search to find something worse than Fantasy Sports Leagues, I discovered the poker craze. I'm sure there are a talented few gaining steady income from such activites, but . . . it's not you. Give it up. Go for a jog or something.

Please add to our rolling list of pathetic activities:

1. Video games
2. Television
3. Visiting Las Vegas
4. Watching football
5. Fantasy Sports Leagues
6. Poker

CANCUN We were supposed to be there this weekend. I guess that's off.

ASIAN CURRENCY ANALYSTS from the big banks were wrong on the Asian currencies. Our 7 daily readers don't need to read our opinion on this again.

I GUESS I GOT my swagger back?

WHO HATES THEIR MTV? Nikky Finke on the Idiots' favorite cable channel.

What bothers me most about Laguna Beach is that these little maggots have the nerve to hang out at restaurants frequented by LJ & Friends. They tarnish the image of California's most beautiful little town.

And the Roosevelt Hotel is just not that impressive (although if you are B-list and below don't even bother trying to get in).

"ACCEPT THE TEACHING OF CHRIST as it is, clear and simple; then you will see that we live among big lies." -- Tolstoy

CHESS Scroll down for move-by-move Kasparov against Karpov, 1986.

http://www.chesscorner.com/worldchamps/kasparov/kasparov.htm

Where'S Your Money?

A sign you spoil women too much . . . you receive text messages requesting specific gifts:

Blue-eyed Blonde: I want the clear plastic louis. Thanks and have a beautiful evening. Please mail soon to [Street Address] San Diego, Ca.

Naturally, I made a trip to South Coast Plaza this evening. But, I picked-up something for myself, too.

COCKTAIL PARTY

We threw a splendid cocktail party last evening at the Luxury Beach Villa. I scattered tealights all over the outdoor patio and throughout the house, giving it a glowing ambience. Thanks to all the friends and family in attendance. The guest list was massive and invitations went out worldwide, tempting invitees to sample great wines, great food and to celebrate the company of great friends.

The afterparty moved to a marvelous restaurant in CDM, where one friend remarked: "I've never seen anything like this in my life." Referring, of course, to the gorgeous women of Newport Beach. We are certainly blessed in that regard. Another friendly comment: "J, everytime I see your face it costs me at least $300." My apologies.

As Adam once told us: "A big kitchen, good friends and great wine . . . that's the essence of happiness." Personally, I think these conditions are necessary but not sufficient. The essence of happiness is in the pursuit of truth and human understanding. But, that's a conversation topic we can discuss over the next bottle of pinot noir.

OUTSOURCING HITS ORANGE COUNTY? Surfboard manufacturers can't compete with Asian imports.

http://www.ocweekly.com/ink/06/05/china-schou.php

I welcome it. But, if you want a custom board, I don't think you're going to buy it directly from China.

Is it true that our current standard of living depends on low wage labor?

By the way, I didn't know The OC had a manufacturing industry? I thought everyone was in real estate. Seriously.

Mark Cuban Against Speculators?

Mark Cuban -- the "Internet boom billionaire" -- is claiming to have the solution to high gas prices: take out the speculators operating in the futures market.

Original idea there, Mark. Here's a better piece, from the legendary Victor Niederhoffer:

Bureaucrats have little incentive to improve, invest or innovate. When speculators are wrong, however, they are punished severely for their mistakes by losses of their own money. If left unchecked, the tendencies of our modern kings to interfere with the natural working of the marketplace would lead to destruction. But speculators, searching for profit, send signals to producers and consumers as to the forces of destruction and good.

Perhaps the most positive impact of our current-day speculators is to check at inception governmental activities that would have an inflationary impact Governments are prone to spend more money on their activities than they take in through taxes. The consequence often has been substantial inflation, followed by war, revolution and destruction of civilization.

Nowadays, however, bond traders are so alert to the long-term consequences of such activities that they immediately send debt yields up significantly at the first sign of inflation. The increased yields have such a negative and immediate impact on government revenue, business activity, and consumer spending that governments have all but given up trying to sneak increased spending past the market. As a result, the rate of inflation slowed markedly throughout the Western world during the 1980s.

Granted, speculators am not angels; many are motivated by gambling and greed, and when given the chance will take advantage of the public as much as the next person. But the efficiency of a competitive marketplace helps to ferret out and reduce unscrupulous conduct.

The intellectual raises his eyebrows at the economic and historical analysis and contemptuously says, "Man cannot live by bread alone." To this I respond that without us, there would be no bread.

I am proud to be a speculator. I am proud that my humble attempts to predict Tuesday's prices on Monday are an indispensable component of our society. By buying low and selling high, I create harmony and freedom.

Sources:
http://www.blogmaverick.com/entry/1234000440060044/
http://www.dailyspeculations.com/vic/spec_as_hero.html

ON THE STREETS OF MEXICO:

MAN: Hombres! What do you need? I can get you anything you want...
LJ: Tienes drogas duras?
MAN: Si! Cocaina, mota, 12-year old kids to work in your factory...
LJ: What . . .?

SUPPORT MIERS? The President appointed his good buddy to the Supreme Court? This is too funny. . .

ANTI-POLICE, ANTI-PRISONS

End the oppression:

Thirty years ago Gore Vidal noted that “roughly 80% of police work in the United States has to do with the regulation of our private morals…controlling what we drink, eat, smoke, put into our veins…with whom and how we have sex or gamble.” Then there were roughly 250,000 prisoners in the nation. Today there is more than 2 million, with another million in county jails awaiting trial or sentencing, and another roughly 3 million under “correctional supervision” on probation or parole. The total national cost of incarceration then was $4 billion annually; today it’s $64 billion, with another $20 billion in federal money and $22-24 billion in money from state governments earmarked for waging the so-called “War on Drugs.” Nationally, around 60% or more of these prisoners are drug criminals. Yet, throughout all this time and expense there has not been the slightest decrease in either drug use or supply.

http://www.newtopiamagazine.net/articles/70
International Phone Cards

More On The Bubble

Overpaid, underworked: real estate agents cash in in San Diego. How long until these clowns are out of careers? Less than 12 months?

In other words, for every Louise James, who has closed on 71 homes this year, there are 95 who sell only four or five homes a year.

"There will be a lot of hungry real estate agents in the next 12 to 18 months," Thornberg said.

Bostic, while not as pessimistic as Thornberg, acknowledges that houses are now selling in "months, not days" as they were a year ago. Now he spends most of his time training agents to price homes in a slow market and better organize their time.

"People have to realize that it is a business and it needs to be treated like a business, not a hobby," Bostic said.

link