When I was a policeman, I always felt relief when a perpetrator finally admitted to his wrong doing. It was a corroboration of the evidence that I already had, coming from the person who did the dirty deed.
Humans have an innate yearning to "come clean" on their sins, and that is the reason why so many people actually admit the wrong doing. It gives them a sense of relief not unlike the relief felt by Catholics when confessing their sins to a priest, and then doing penance for their sins. The relief is instant.
However, when such a confession happens in a simple conversation between an interviewer and a guest on T.V., it sometimes goes either unnoticed, or unappreciated, by the people listening, as their interest did not, at first, lie with hearing a "confession"! It essentially gets lost in the context of the greater interview.
In the interview in question, however, one would have to fall asleep to overlook the confession of an otherwise honest man who often "says it like it is". Jim Cramer of "Mad Money" fame on CNBC did exactly this in an interview which has been posted online.
To listen to that "confession" on YouTube (see Jim Cramer admits ) is to understand that the markets today, are susceptible to a whole range of manipulations, from Central Banks, to fund managers to the glorified salesmen, masquerading as investment advisers, who are paid huge sums by Wall Street firms to corral investors into believing in the "integrity" of those firms.
Jim is merely an honest man who admits to some "otherwise legal" manipulations of stocks for the benefit of his fund and his clients. However, if you multiply by the hundreds of otherwise honest fund managers doing similar manipulations on behalf of their funds and clients, by the number of out and out con men such as Bernie Madoff, who have entered the great Casino, through the front door of Business Schools, contacts and friendships, it is little wonder that the average Joe has been running for the exits in the past few years.
Folks, as comedian George Carlin once proclaimed, "Wall Street is a big club, and your not in it"!
"Bulls make money, bears make money, pigs get slaughtered" Jim Cramer - Mad Money
Yes, Jim Cramer can drive you nuts with his ranting and raving about stocks and investing. Sometimes he is right, sometimes he is wrong (just like the rest of us) but of all of his rantings, I sure like the quote "Bulls make money, bears make money, pigs get slaughtered". Jim drives home this simple thought every night on his CNBC show, Mad Money.
Jim's style can grate on serious investors and newbies alike, but one thing is for sure, he does try to enlighten the small retail investor and this quote is far and away, one of the best pieces of advice he gives every single night to his viewers. If you don't listen to this golden piece of advice, you stand to lose your shirt, and more.
If your investment strategy is to throw money on hot stocks and hope for a home run, then you should change the game. You are better suited to the game of craps at the local Casino. With that attitude, you may actually do better at the Casino, than in the market.
Economic forecasts are never certain. If you put three economists in the same room, you will end up with three entirely different opinions of where the economy, and by extension, the market is headed. Don't invest in stocks because of an economic forecast! Invest only when you have done your own home work on an individual stock, it's market niche, it's earnings/potential, it's management, it's trading range, and analysts opinions. (Actually we like stocks that are under the radar of analysts, but is for another post).
The bottom for traders is this! If you have a stock that is up say 20% to 30% and you don't take at least "some" profit, then consider yourself a pig, and expect to get slaughtered. You don't have to sell because a stock is up, but taking "some" money off the table when you are up is simply a fact of good trading.
If as opposed to "trading" you consider yourself a long term investor and you are not concerned with short to medium term profits, you may still wish to "take some off the table". It just make sense because, as you've heard many times, "a bird in the hand is worth more than two in the bush"!
And Pigs can't fly! but of course, you already know that!
Good investing- HP
PS: and by the way, don't forget to pay down some debt this year. A great investment is not to owe more money than you have. You don't want that burden in retirement, especially in this environment.
Is that a wicked smile on the beast, as almost every major stock in this market advances onward and upward? Are the innocent climbing back on board? What is driving the sentiment of investors, in this market which has risen 80% since that March low, to new highs for the past 8 days. Is it a true bull market, or a beast that will throw the innocent into a wall of hurt, and cause financial damage around the world and countries to turn on each other?
After all, apocalyptic predictions of the world ending are said to point to the year 2012! Is Nouriel Roubini an economist or a prophet in the mold of Nostradamus or even St John the Apostle (who wrote the book of revelation) Did Nostradamus and St John, along with the ancient Mayans receive a direction from God that points to 2012 as "the year of destruction"? Did Dr. Roubini receive the same message two centuries later?
Is Jim Cramer one of the false prophets foretold by St John? Is his recent prophecy of a rising bull market helping to cause a wild party of unbridled optimism when the world, according to Prophet, Roubini, is about to go to hell in a hand basket? Hell, even Charlie Munger of Berkshire-Hathaway thinks that 2012 is the year of doom. (see- Charlie Munger). His partner, the venerable Warren Buffet remains an eternal optimist, buying a Chinese car company and an American Railroad in the past year. Others are warning of a future of Hyper Inflation.
I certainly don't have all the answers, but these guys believe they do. However with sentiment so split between the giddy bull soothsayers and the doom and gloom naysayers, how can we mere mortals find our way through the investment jungle that has become today's market. Well, in point of fact, it has always been a jungle and experience teaches that when people are in turmoil, especially investors, opportunities usually abound. The problem is, how do you find such opportunities, when your Retirefund won't allow you to invest in Berkshire-Hathaway.
More moderate voices can be heard through the din of disaster scenarios and scare mongering. One of those is Peter Bisson, a director of McKinsey and Co, of Stamford, Connecticut. In a recent interview with the Globe and Mail, titled, a great re-balancing of economic power, he makes some interesting points about the current markets. Some of his thoughts:
"The financial crisis is just a little earthquake in a long process of fundamental economic realignment. !"
"globalization is basically a good thing. It has lifted huge numbers of people out of poverty"
"For the first time in hundreds of years, there will be more growth in emerging markets than in developed markets. We are doubling the size of the global middle class. "
"the work force in a lot of the West still fits a 20th century economy. In the U.S., there is only 3 per cent unemployment in the most highly educated groups, but 30 per cent unemployment in the bottom 10 per cent of education. We are drifting toward this chronically unemployed group because skill sets don't match."
"Canada is a big beneficiary. This huge [emerging markets] urbanization and this doubling of the world's middle class drives very significant real increases in resource demand of pretty much all types." (and Canada is a supplier of many of those resources)!
"Inequality between nations is evening out; inequality within nations is getting worse. That is politically volatile, and you can't escape that reality."
And finally:
"The risk in the system today is more on the individual. On average each year, 15 per cent of U.S. households can now expect their incomes to fall as much as 50 per cent. That's a third higher than in the 1970s."
I encourage you to read the entire interview at: GlobeandMail.com
Brigus Gold Corp. (TSX: BRD)(NYSE Amex: BRD) ("Brigus Gold") announces that the business combination of Apollo Gold Corporation (TSX: APG)(NYSE Amex: AGT) ("Apollo") and Linear Gold Corp. (TSX: LRR) ("Linear") has closed and the new combined company begins operating as Brigus Gold effective immediately.
Brigus Gold will commence trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange ("TSX") and NYSE Amex under the symbol "BRD" on June 28, 2010. Brigus warrants issued in exchange for the Linear-listed warrants will commence trading on the TSX under the symbol "BGD.WT".
On June 25, 2010, Apollo filed articles of amendment which, among other things, changed the name of the company to Brigus Gold Corp., consolidated the Brigus shares, including those issued to Linear shareholders, on the basis of one (1) post-consolidation Brigus share for every four (4) Brigus shares outstanding immediately prior to such consolidation. Brigus common shares will begin trading on a post-consolidated basis. Post consolidation and after completion of the business combination, Brigus Gold will have approximately 129 million basic shares and 176 million fully diluted shares outstanding.
The business combination was structured as a court-approved plan of arrangement (the "Transaction") under the Business Corporations Act (Alberta) pursuant to which Apollo acquired all of the issued and outstanding Linear shares and Linear amalgamated with 1526753 Alberta ULC (the "Apollo Sub"). Under the terms of the Transaction, former shareholders of Linear will receive, after giving effect to the share consolidation described above, 1.37 Brigus Gold shares for each common share of Linear, subject to adjustment for fractional shares. Outstanding options and warrants to acquire Linear shares have been converted into options and warrants to acquire Brigus Gold shares, adjusted in accordance with the same ratio. Linear will be delisted from the TSX on June 28, 2010.
As previously announced, Wade K. Dawe is Chief Executive Officer and President of Brigus Gold. The other officers of Brigus Gold are Brian MacEachen, Executive Vice President and Corporate Secretary; Melvin Williams, Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice President, Finance and Corporate Development; Richard F. Nanna, Senior Vice President, Exploration; Howard Bird, Vice President, Exploration; Brent E. Timmons, Controller and Vice President; and Wendy Yang, Vice President, Investor Relations.
Brigus Gold also announces that its headquarters is located in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
About Brigus Gold
Brigus Gold is a growing gold producer with a strong balance sheet, committed to maximizing shareholder value through a strategy of cost-effective production, mine development, exploration and effective risk management, utilizing selective partnerships and acquisitions. Brigus Gold operates the wholly owned flagship Black Fox Mine in the Timmins gold district in Ontario, Canada. The Black Fox Operations encompass the adjoining 100 percent owned, prospective Grey Fox and Pike River properties, all in the Township of Black River-Matheson in Ontario, Canada. Brigus Gold is advancing the Goldfields Project near Uranium City, Saskatchewan, which hosts the Box and Athona gold deposits. In Mexico, Brigus Gold also has the Ixhuatan Project (100 percent Brigus Gold) in Chiapas, southern Mexico, and the Huizopa Joint Venture, (80 percent Brigus Gold and 20 percent Minas De Coronado, S. de R.L. de C.V.), an early stage, gold-silver exploration project, approximately 16 kilometers (10 miles) southwest of Minefinders Dolores gold-silver mine, in the Sierra Madres in Chihuahua. In the Dominican Republic, Brigus Gold and Everton Resources have a joint venture at the Ampliacion Pueblo Viejo-Loma El Marte gold exploration projects.
Forward-looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release relating to the proposed Merger are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of securities legislation. These statements include statements about the commencement of trading and delisting of Linear shares. Brigus Gold does not intend, nor assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by applicable securities laws. These forward-looking statements represent management's best judgment based on current facts and assumptions that management considers reasonable, including that all third party regulatory and governmental approvals to the Merger will be obtained and all other conditions to completion of the Merger will be satisfied or waived. Brigus Gold does not make any representation that reasonable business people in possession of the same information would reach the same conclusions. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the companies to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. In particular, fluctuations in the price of gold or in currency markets could prevent the companies from achieving their targets. Other factors are disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in documents filed by Brigus Gold's predecessor companies, Apollo and Linear, from time to time with the Toronto Stock Exchange, the NYSE Amex Equities Exchange and, on SEDAR and with other regulatory authorities, including the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
SOURCE: Brigus Gold
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