‘Less chocolate in a bar, price stays the same: Pure deflation?’

Afshin Rattansi goes underground on the impact of inflation in international relations. Pippa Malmgren, former U.S. Presidential policy advisor, warns that the UK and US are using inflation to default on their debts, and their principal creditors, Russia and China, are making grabs for assets in the face of that uncertainty and risk. Kevin Courtney, Deputy General Secretary of the National Union of Teachers, warns academies are failing to increase school standards and let vested interests into the system. With further talks on TTIP this week, we look further into what damage could be wreaked on the NHS if the free trade agreement goes through. And Iain Duncan Smith plans yet more cuts to benefits – as research shows that even with greater austerity, Tory welfare spending will be no lower than when they came into power.

- Source, Russia Today

Dr. Marc Faber - Employment Numbers Are BS

John Manfreda and Jason Burack of Wall St for Main St had on returning guest Editor and Publisher of the Gloom, Boom & Doom Report http://www.gloomboomdoom.com/, Dr. Marc Faber.

Jason and John ask Dr. Faber about interest rates, financial repression, ECB QE, Swiss depegging, Greece leaving the Euro, the fake employment numbers, Asia, China, Gold and Gold Mining.

- Source, Wall Street for Main Street

David Morgan - Silver Manifesto Updated

David Morgan Discusses Silver in Depth and about his new book.

The Cancer Which Started In The US Financial System Has Spread Globally

"The US Dollar payment system is essentially a system for looting. This, Globalization and Neo-liberal economics are tools of American economic imperialism. Countries are beginning to realize this. The looting of countries by American imperialism has now reached the point where it is turning on itself - Greece for example."

- Source, Gold Silver

The Key Currency Will Be Gold - Peter Spina

If There Ever Was A Time To Hold Gold This Is It

Axel Merk - Why Asset Prices Must Return To Lower Levels

Saying it's been a busy week and half of the central bank front is perhaps a sizeable understatement.

First, the Swiss National Bank stunned the world (and its brethren central banks) by removing its peg to the Euro. This was quickly followed by Mario Draghi finally making good on his longtime threat of firing QE bazooka, announcing that the ECB will pursue a 60 billion Euro per month easing program for the next 16 months. And amidst all the smoke, the Canadian central bank snuck in a surprise rate cut to its interest rate.

To make sense of both the "Why?" behind these extreme moves, as well as the "What?" in terms of their implications, Axel Merk, founder and Chief Investment Officer of Merk Funds joins us this week.

In his opinion, recent events are exactly the kind the symptoms he's been expecting as the prime strategy pursued by central banks since 2008 -- to force capital into speculative assets -- approaches its natural and inevitable denouement. Indeed, he projects the surprises in store for us and the systemic instability we're beginning to see are just getting started.

- Source, Peak Prosperity

Michael Pento - Flocking Back Into Hard Money, Gold

Financial analyst Michael Pento says, “Gold is going up in all currencies because investors are coming to this realization, or epiphany, that you cannot trust central banks. In 2008, we had the Great Recession. We had the bursting of asset bubbles. We had the bursting of the housing bubble. We had the bursting of the stock bubble. The Federal Reserve came in, and it was not only the Fed, we had central banks from across the world increase debt by 40%. 40% since 2008 on a global basis, and they took interest rates, which were already low, down to 0% and negative % and left them there for going on almost seven years. People had the audacity to believe that this was going to be a success story. They are slowly learning we have solved nothing. We have just made all the problems associated with the great recession much, much worse. As that realization unfolds, people will be flocking back into hard money, and that means gold.”

What will trigger the next financial meltdown? Pento says keep your eye on the land of the rising sun, heavily leveraged Japan. Pento predicts, “I think the Japanese central bank is absolutely going to destroy that currency. . . . When that unwinds, you are going to see a massive wipeout of equity prices. That just metastasizes across the globe.”

- Source, USA Watchdog

Gold Price Will Reset Over Night - Bill Murphy, GATA

Boomers, Millennials & Stunning 74% Collapse In Stocks

In the popular perception of economics, some things are taken to be self-evident. Like the truism that investors should just buy and hold stocks for the long term. Or that prosperity is attainable through hard work, saving and home ownership. Or that a college education is the path to personal empowerment.

But the truth is, our history is limited. The Baby Boomer generation — the 76 million Americans born between 1946 and 1964 — was the first to really live a full lifecycle in the economy as currently structured. Members of the Greatest Generation were paying their mortgages when the value of the U.S. dollar was still tied to gold. Before that, folks remembered what it was like when there was no Federal Reserve — or federal income taxes, for that matter.

- Source, King World News, Read more here.

Bad News Is Bad News, Stocks & Bond Yields Tumble After Data Triple Whammy

Well this is not supposed to happen. 2015 appears to have started with the "bad news is bad news" meme engaged as the standard USDJPY-driven opening ramp has collapsed on the back of a triple whammy of terrible data (US PMI, Construction Spending, and ISM). The Santa Rally (theoretically due to finish at the close on Monday) is in danger of not being a no-brainer... Treasury yields are plunging (10Y -6.5bps at 2.10%) Stocks only hope now is a 120.00 bounce in USDJPY....

- Source, Zero Hedge, read more here.

These 19 States Just Hiked The Minimum Wage: Here Come The "Unintended Consequences"

Starting on January 1, 2015, a one year-delayed component of Obamacare kicks in: according to the health care law, businesses that employ at least 100 full-time workers — or full-time equivalents, including part-time workers — must offer health benefits to at least 70% of those working at least 30 hours a week by Thursday, or pay a penalty. This will expand to by next year, when companies will have to provide insurance to 95% of their workers, and firms with 50 to 99 employees must offer coverage as well. As a result, and as even the USA Today reports, "many businesses in low-wage industries have hired more part-time workers and cut the hours of full-timers recently to soften the impact of new health law requirements that take effect Thursday."

- Source, Zero Hedge, read more here.

Do Rich People Deserve To Be Rich? Russell Brand The Trews

Russell Brand The Trews (E223).
I'm joined by writer and activist George Monbiot as we discuss whether wealth really is the inevitable result of hard work.

Get REAL . . . COPPER

Jan Skoyles discusses copper with Simon Hunt of Simon Hunt Strategic Services about the industrial metal known as 'Dr. Copper' for its ability to predict the economic forecast. Due to monopolies and various price fixing schemes, Mr. Hunt reckons that other metals are now better at forecasting the future. He also makes his own predictions for where the future price may take us in the copper market in 2015.

- Source, Keiser Report

Big Kaputski of 2015

Max Keiser and Stacy Herbert celebrate the first day of 2015 with some regular guests who attempt to predict the big themes of the New Year. First, they talk to Dominic Frisby of Moneyweek.com about where it all might kick off this year - perhaps Japan? Next, Professor Steve Keen talks Minsky moments, debt deflation and the Bancor. Last, but not least, they speak to Liam Halligan of BNE.eu for his predictions on Europe, China, Russia and dividend yields in 2015.

- Source, Keiser Report