John Mugarian's Dynamic Growth

"You know what the news is-- in a minute, you're going to hear the rest of the story"- Paul Harvey

For those eagerly scouring the scorched earth for real estate, I wouldn't be too quick to swallow the bait. Sure, there will come a time when real estate is an eye-popping bargain, but the 10 year bear market has just begun.

The real estate bull was a long one. Every correction, and even catastrophe, over the past 50 years has marked opportunity. As prices began to escalate, lenders enticed borrowers with new financing methods that made payments affordable.

Take for example the 30 year mortgage. The creation of the 30 year mortgage allowed home-buyers affordable payments, while banks were cashing in by front-end loading the interest payments. All one has to do is pullout an amortization schedule on a 30 year loan and you'll see what I mean.

The 30 year mortgage scheme was a brilliant one. It allowed escalated home prices to become more affordable to the "average joe", and this allowed housing prices to keep climbing.

As prices went went even higher, bankers and money lenders in New York had to devise a way to keep the game going. As if the 30 year mortgage scheme wasn't inflationary enough, lenders decided that a 20% down-payment was no longer required. The 20% down-payment was reduced to 10%, and eventually to zero. It was at this point that the real estate bubble began to morph into the form of a wicked beast.

Just as the real estate game was about to come crashing down, the money lenders in New York came up with the final scheme. To keep the game going, they concocted the home equity lines of credit based on the appraised, and newly appreciated values of the buyers home. Home debtors (not owners since they're making payments) swallowed this appreciated value scheme hook, line, and sinker.

Wall Street, to hide their scheme, sliced and diced the mortgages into pools, got their buddies to rate the pools as AAA, and sold them to anyone stupid enough to buy them.

In 2008, the walls came tumbling down, and here we sit.

The real estate carcass is not dead, but it is severely wounded, and is dying.

Government Incentives are Finding Takers

Lower prices, combined with new government incentives and tax credits are stirring some interest in real estate. For the short run, this is like putting the dying carcass on life support. While the current downturn in real estate has been painful for some, the correction is not over with yet.

With millions of US jobs shipped overseas, and the "official" unemployment rate of 10.2% ( unofficial 17%), I don't see how real estate can recover anytime soon.

The "old" 20% down-payment rule is now back into effect at the banks. This rule applies to people with good credit however. Even if a person can afford the 20% down-payment, cash strapped state and local governments are raising property taxes to pay for budget shortfalls.

Along the coast, beachfront property (one of the drivers of the speculative boom) costs (and risks) are so exorbitantly high, that only the mega rich can afford the yearly costs of taxes and insurance.

So, in short. I believe that real estate, the driver of the economy from 2002-2008, will not rebound until obvious bargains become, eye-popping bargains.

Currently, existing homeowners are being driven from their homes because of high taxes and the increased cost of insurance. Prices will have to fall some more to make up for the costs (and risks) of owning real estate.

"You know what the news is-- in a minute, you're going to hear the rest of the story"- Paul Harvey

Who does Tiger Woods think he is? Isn't screwing other people reserved just for Wall Street?

The Tiger incident didn't surprise me. Actually, I had to chuckle when I heard the news. Many had hoped Tiger would be the shinning light for millions of kids, and even adults. Setting a great example for others is what we all wish for; don't we?

The lessons here for investors is a simple one that many can't grasp. If Tiger Woods were a stock, he would be comparable to Yahoo in January of 2000 when it climbed to $238.50 a share. I don't care who you talked to back then, if you told them that Yahoo would eventually fall to $15, they would have thought you were nuts. The same could be said about AOL during it's heyday.

Today's darling, like Tiger Woods, is Google (GOOG). Eventually the party ends. You can't tell me that Google deserves to have a market cap above, or be put in the same category as Coca-Cola (KO) and General Electric (GE).

Obviously, there are those who will defend Google to the hilt. All I can say is they are many who did the same when AOL and Yahoo were at their peak.

Sam Zell was interviewed on CNBC yesterday, and he made a great point. He said, "Any day you don't sell, you're buying." This is a great rule of thumb for investors asking, "when should I sell?"

If you're not willing to pay the asking price of a stock that you currently own, why not sell it?

Sign Up For The Newsletter

I have restructured the Dynamic Growth website, and want to keep the information in the Newsletter exclusively for members who enroll in the service. It's free until the end of the year, so sign up and give it a try.

We are very excited about the new and exclusive content we've added to the site. We are providing this new service to those who sign up by establishing a "username" and "password". This will give you access to the "Newsletter" portion of the website.

Here are some of the changes we made;

1) The Dynamic Growth "Weekly Briefing" will only be available in the "Newsletter" portion of the website, and no longer be available on the blog page.

To access the "Weekly Briefing", investors will need to establish a a "username" and "password" to enter the "Newsletter" link.

2) The Dynamic Growth "Weekly Briefing" will be expanded, and will provide members with the following;

a) Top 10 Fidelity Sector Funds:

We will enhance this area by occasionally recommending Fidelity funds that are not sector specific. We will also, from time to time use non-fidelity bull or bear funds to hedge, or enhance returns.

b) Top 10 ETF's:

Sticking to the sector investing theme, we will use sector, sub-sectors, currency, bond, hedges, and entire nation ETF's to enhance performance.

c) Top Stock's Portfolio:

This is a new feature to Dynamic Growth. We will provide members with buy/sell/hold advice on stocks that we feel will beat the market. This will include the top large cap, mid cap, and occasionally small cap stocks that we feel exhibit superior fundamentals.

Another enhancement we will add is;

d) Under Loved, and Under Appreciated Stock List:

The Under Loved, and Under Appreciated Stock List will be a list of stocks that have significantly sold-off in overreaction to the bad press or fear. While some of these stocks have gone down for good reason, others may have fallen victim unjustly.

We will not actively recommend any of the stocks on this list, but make you aware that some of these stocks may be great turnaround stories, and some may not.

3) We will announce any actionable "Flash Alert" notifications on the blog page. To access the information contained in "Flash Alert", you will have to lo-gin to the "Newsletter" portion of the website.

These "Flash Alerts" will provide members with immediate, actionable, and timely advice.

4) The "Journal" portion of the website will continues as a blog. Here we will update you on hot stories of the day with a "Bird's Eye View" of what we think is going on.

Providing a service such as this is very time consuming, and costly. In 2010, we will convert the "Newsletter" portion of website to a paid service. If you like what you see over the remaining days of 2009, we will offer subscribers with a special introductory offer on the first year subscription.

For the rest of 2009, the newsletter is free. There is no obligation, just sign up and give it a try.

"You know what the news is-- in a minute, you're going to hear the rest of the story"- Paul Harvey

I have restructured the Dynamic Growth website, and want to keep the information in the Newsletter exclusively for members who enroll in the service. It's free until the end of the year, so sign up and give it a try.

We are very excited about the new and exclusive content we've added to the site. We are providing this new service to those who sign up by establishing a "username" and "password". This will give you access to the "Newsletter" portion of the website.

Well, it's almost final, Comcast is buying a 51% stake in NBC Universal through a joint venture with GE. Ge will hold 49%, and probably spin-off NBCU to existing shareholders in the months ahead.

The talk of this deal is actually missing its mark. As an outsider, I would love to own NBC Universal independently since I look at the unit as a cash cow. Has it been mismanaged? Yes, I believe it has.

GE is currently in our Dynamic Growth, Under Loved, and Under Appreciated Stock Portfolio. I happen to believe GE's biggest problem is its management. Taking a page out of Jack Welch's playbook, I would fire 15% of upper management right now starting with its CEO, Jeff Immelt.

I believe shedding NBC Universal with its plethora of Treasured Assets is more about raising cash than it is unloading non-productive assets. When I take a look at the NBC Universal assets, I came to a very simple conclusion.

Only a friggin idiot couldn't make money from these assets!

-Bravo
-CNBC
-Chiller
-Focus Features
-Global Networks
-MSNBC
-NBC Entertainment
-NBC News
-NBC Sports & Olympics
-NBC Universal Television Group
-NBC Universal Television Stations
-Oxygen
-Sleuth
-Syfy
-Telemundo
-USA Network
-Universal HD
-Universal Parks & Resorts
-Universal Pictures
-Universal Studios Home Entertainment
-Weather Channel
-iVillage
-mun2

Don't let GE bullshit you. They are not shedding unproductive assets. If they were to really do that, they would start with the unproductive assets occupying their executive offices.

Market Brief's & Tidbits

Obama Sends Troops to Afghanistan:

The sooner you understand that the American president works for the power elite, the real people in charge of our country, the better off you will be.

I feel I have a right to talk about this issue because I have a step-son who was a paratrooper with the 82nd airborne, and was one of the first on the ground in Iraq when the war first began. I've heard the stories. Also, how many weekend only national guardsmen got shafted into a back door draft, and sent to war in Iraq and Afghanistan to protect the oil assets of the rich?

Clearly, most American's are sick of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. With the technology that our government has, they can spot a pimple on an ants ass from satellite, but they can't find Osama Bin Laden and Al Qaeda.

The power people who run our government do not direct our politicians into a conflict unless they can make money from it. As unrealistic as this sounds, the purpose of the war in Afghanistan is to protect Unocal’s interest in the Trans-Afghanistan oil pipeline.

Russia tried to protect their oil assets in Afghanistan, and got their ass kicked. The US aided Afghanistan during

Before you take seriously what you hear from the press and media (controlled by the power elite), you need to study the issues for yourself. Shed the thoughts of terrorism, Osama Bin Laden, and Al Qaeda. Focus instead on the money.

Is an Oil Pipeline Behind the War in Afghanistan?

You didn't see this on the news, did you?

"Hundreds rally at West Point to call for end of Afghan war"

Gold reaches record high above $1,217 an ounce

Yesterday, I was thinking about a the various hedges against a possible collapse of the US dollar. All of the choices look unattractive since the price of all precious metals have gone through the roof- Gold, Silver, Copper.

But then I thought, what if the dollar doesn't collapse. Then you would need to hedge your hedge.

In today's money, $1.00 in pennies (dated 1909-1982 Lincoln) has a total melt value of $2.13. Here's the breakdown;

Total Face Value: $1.00
Coin Type: 1909-1982 Lincoln Copper Cent
Copper Price: $3.2190 / pound
Zinc Price: $1.0814 / pound

Total melt value is $2.13.

-There are 0.6514 pounds of copper and 0.0343 pounds of zinc in $1.00 face value of copper cent(s).

-A roll of copper cent(s) has 50 coins and is valued at $1.07 when copper is at $3.2190 / lb and zinc at $1.0814 / lb (exact value is $1.06689329804).

If the dollar collapses, you can have $1.00 in pennies worth $2.13 in metallic value. If the dollar does not collapse, you still have $1.00 in pennies, which can be converted into a dollar, and you risked nothing.

$1.00 in pennies = $2.13
$100 in pennies = $213.00
$1000 in pennies = 2,130.00
$100000 in pennies = $213,000

Interesting thought!

We bought Amazon (AMZN) in the "new" Dynamic Growth Top Stock Portfolio on November 24th at $132.22. We are selling it all today at $142.44 for a gain of $10.22/ share or 7.73% or 331% annualized.

Keep the proceeds in cash for now.

Thanks
John Mugarian

The Dynamic Growth "Weekly Briefing" was posted to the Newsletter portion of the website today.

To access the "Weekly Briefing", go to the "Newsletter" link at the top of the page and sign in by establishing your own username and password.

Several new features have been added including a list of our Top Growth Stocks, a list of Under Appreciated Value Stocks, and enhancements to our ETF and Fidelity Sector Fund portfolios.

Today we added two new stocks, one value stock, and one growth stock. Here are a few comments from this weeks Newsletter Briefing.

Friday's strong opening came on the heels of a better than expected jobs number (falling from 10% from 10.2% in October), but the rally was quickly met with a sell-off after investors realized that seasonal hiring may have played a larger, but temporary roll.

We are also adding a semiconductor company to the Growth Stock list that derives 80% of its revenue from Asia.

Sign up now to read the rest of the Weekend Briefing.

"You know what the news is-- in a minute, you're going to hear the rest of the story"- Paul Harvey

The financial news media reported that today's 104 point decline on the DJIA was over concerns that a unit of Dubai World reported a first-half loss and Fitch Ratings cut Greece’s credit rating. I really don't believe that's the case.

Today, the dollar and Treasuries rose while demand for dollar carry trade assets sold off. The price of oil declined for a fifth day, and gold closed below $1150 an ounce.

Speaking of Gold, one might want to do some research on the Midas metals meteoric rise. Is it a bubble? Is it manipulation? Or, is it for real?

Here is an interesting article claiming that some of the Gold in circulation may be fake- Article

Over the weekend, six more banks bit the dust- Article

This morning, the financial media wanted us to believe that giving our hard earned tax dollars to Wall Street would not result in a total loss- U.S. Forecasts Smaller Loss From Bank Bailout.

While Goldman Sachs executives buy guns to protect themselves while they run off with our money, the 2005 bankruptcy reform act hasn't stopped the millions of people still filing-Article

The former Community Organizer, and Nobel Peace Prize winner, is sending off more troops to Afghanistan to protect the oil pipelines; Oops, I mean fight the terrorists. Apparently, the media is behind him, and here's why- Article

And finally, news is beginning to leak out that Tiger Woods has been offered an executive position on Wall Street. Now that his resume contains lying, cheating, deception, and immoral behavior, he is almost qualified.

I'm sure there are some major corporate sponsors that stand to lose millions if Tiger's image is tarnished for good. I'll bet they are working overtime to help him repair his image. They'll probably try to get him to go to rehab for sexual addition, and then appear on Oprah crying and pleading for forgiveness.

Sorry, pal. The golf money you earned is yours. The endorsement money you earned was made off the backs of people who bought products because they believed you were a great roll model. Keep the golf money, return the roll model money.

"You know what the news is-- in a minute, you're going to hear the rest of the story"- Paul Harvey

Since Thanksgiving, the stock market has been incredibly boring. This means one of two things; either we are going through a normal cycle of tax loss selling combined with profit-taking, or the smart money is selling, while those left behind in the the rally are buying.

Whatever the case, now is not the time to be a hero. I have several reasons for my over cautious tone. As you are aware (for those who follow our newsletter), our current equity asset allocations are way below the levels normally recommended levels;

50% Equities: (Was 85%/Normally 95%) Aggressive Investors
40% Equities: (Was 72%/Normally 80%) Moderately Aggressive Investors
30% Equities: (Was 56%/Normally 60%) Moderate Investors
20% Equities: (Was 36%/Normally 40%) Moderately Conservative Investors
10% Equities: (Was 18%/Normally 20%) Conservative Investors

We have several reasons for our cautious stance despite what the so called experts are telling you on the financial channels. While we may longer be staring into the abyss, I believe we are within throwing distance from it.

We are being told the economy is on the mend, and many believe the story because the stock market is recovering. From where I sit, something doesn't pass the smell test.

The simple truth sometimes is not so obvious. So, let's make this as simple as possible. If lenders are going to make it tougher for for marginal or even average consumers to get credit, where are they going to get the money to spend, and where is economic growth going to come from?

During the real estate and stock market boom of 2003-2007, economic growth came by way of an extension of credit that came by way of second mortgages/ lines of credit, and credit cards. Credit was also issued by the extraction of equity from the appreciation in home values.

The easy credit boom is gone. Its done! Its cooked! Stick a fork in it!

All of this leads me to believe that we have entered a period in the financial markets and economy that will be eerily similar to the 1980-1990 time-frame. I believe some life altering changes are in store for millions of people in the years ahead.

The new 1980's-1990 period is now 2008-2018.

Here's what I think will happen;

1) If the banks don't extend discretionary credit, consumers will spending less and live more frugally.

2) This readjustment period (5-10 years) will hurt corporate profits. The stock market, after an initial recovery, will sell-off, then flat line.

3) After several rallies attempts and sell-offs, the stock market will rally into the mid-term elections, and also prior to the next Presidential Cycle election. The employment rate will magically improve as the government will try and hire everyone they can.

4) The big stock market rally (2009- to maybe early 2010) will prove to be a huge selling opportunity. Shortly following this rally will be a long, drawn out period of substandard returns. Making big money in stocks will be difficult with the exception of traders who buy big declines, and short big rallies.

As a result, more and more investors will get disgusted with the markets, and begin to shift money into safer investments (bonds & CD's) that provide steady gains. The game of extreme speculation will be over.

5) After a brief deflationary scare, inflation will creep in pushing bond yields higher which will make CD's and bonds an attractive alternative to stocks.

6) While real estate prices have declined, the reduction from peak prices doesn't necessarily make it a bargain. Given the unfriendly nature of the state and local taxing authorities, combined with the higher cost of insurance, many investors will realize that real estate still is not a bargain even at current prices. Like the NASDAQ, real estate will remain in a bear market for at least 5-10 years.

The last bubble to severely punished investors was the "NASDAQ Bubble". Nine years after the bubble burst, the Over-the Counter (NASDAQ) index is still about 50% below it's 2000 peak.

Make no mistake, the stock market will be, and is, a traders market. Long term investors need to alter their thinking.

Please Note:

To access the "Weekly Briefing", go to the "Newsletter" link at the top of the page and sign in by establishing your own username and password.

Several new features have been added including a list of our Top Growth Stocks, a list of Under Appreciated Value Stocks, and enhancements to our ETF and Fidelity Sector Fund portfolios.

"You know what the news is-- in a minute, you're going to hear the rest of the story"- Paul Harvey

I hope that you and your family are enjoying this wonderful time of the year. I’ve always enjoyed the days leading up to Christmas. I especially enjoy the spiritual time of going to church Christmas Eve, and watching the lights twinkle on the tree before I go to bed. It reminds me that all was once good, and can be again.

The Economy and Stock Market

While I enjoy its challenges (particularly when I’m right), my 21 years in this business has been quite an education.

As an investor in the 1980’s, I was fascinated with business, how corporations operated, and how the financial markets reflected what was happening in the world. Oddly, as my experience grew, and my relationships with some of the nation’s top financial authorities expanded, I no longer viewed the markets through rose colored glasses.

After seeing many fortunes made, and many fortunes wiped out, my philosophy towards investing changed. No doubt, the most important thing I learned about the financial markets is this;

The financial markets don’t belong to us. We are only invited guests. We cannot control the outcome unless we pick the correct time to participate, and the correct time to leave.

The stock market is similar to someone else’s backyard. It’s like your neighbor telling you that you are welcome to hop the fence, and visit his yard anytime you wish. But what your neighbor doesn’t tell you is they have a Pit-bull in the house, and a Doberman in the garage. At anytime, one, or both of these animals will be released into the backyard without notice. This my friends is how the stock market works.

How the Really Rich Make Money in the Markets

I’ve always sensed that the best investment legends, the ones that made their fortunes in the stock market knew something that the average investor didn’t. I didn’t realize that my senses would be so accurate until I met one.

We all have met millionaires. I’m not talking about your average millionaire. I’m talking about multi-millionaires, and billionaires.

Don’t you find it odd that the people you know, the average investor, or even a local millionaire lost tons of money during the technology boom of 1999-2000, lost tons of money in real estate after 2007, and also lost tons of money after the 2008-2009 stock market decline? For the sake of this discussion, we will call these people- “The Public”.

What I find odd is the people or investors that made money during these times, or were able to sidestep the declines before they even occurred. For the sake of this discussion, we will call these people- “The Private”.

“The Public” always gets their information from public sources (financial TV, newspapers- Barrons, Wall Street Journal, Money Magazine, neighbors, friends, etc). “The Private” doesn’t get their information from these sources, nor do they rely on them to make decisions. This is a big deal since we are talking about people who lose money versus people who make money.

“The Public” always seems to get caught up in manias. Call it what you will, but often times its greed. Like gamblers in a casino, when the dice are hot, the roulette wheel is landing on the right color, or the cards are in their favor, people like to double-down.

“The Private” investor is very different. They know when to walk away. They watch the actions of the “The Public” investor very carefully, and take their cues from them.

While the “The Public” investor was buying worthless dot-com stocks in 2000, and paying elevated prices for stocks and real estate in 2006-2007, “The Private” investor was selling.

During the October 2008-March 2009 time-frame, while the “The Public” investor was selling, and running scared, “The Private” investor was buying.

We bought AmBev (ABV) at $97.25, and Baidu (BIDU) at $429.00 in the "new" Dynamic Growth Top Stock Portfolio on November 24th. We are selling both today at it all today at $98.54, and $424.21 respectively. We had a slight gain in ABV, and a slight loss in BIDU.

Hold the proceeds in cash for now.

The Dynamic Growth "Weekly Briefing" was posted to the Newsletter portion of the website today.

To access the "Weekly Briefing", go to the "Newsletter" link at the top of the page and sign in by establishing your own username and password.

Several new features have been added including a list of our Top Growth Stocks, a list of Under Appreciated Value Stocks, and enhancements to our ETF and Fidelity Sector Fund portfolios.

Thanks
John Mugarian

"You know what the news is-- in a minute, you're going to hear the rest of the story"- Paul Harvey

To access the "Weekly Briefing", go to the "Newsletter" link at the top of the page and sign in by establishing your own username and password.

Several new features have been added including a list of our Top Growth Stocks, a list of Under Appreciated Value Stocks, and enhancements to our ETF and Fidelity Sector Fund portfolios.

Unless we are headed toward a socialistic society here in the US, I believe CitiGroup (C) and Bank of America (BAC) hold substantial appreciation potential for long term investors. The big question of course is can you tune out the noise, and flash forward your thinking 5-10 years.

Here's my thought process;

CitiGroup (C)

CitiGroup is huge. They have a global footprint that provides a wide range of financial services to consumers and corporate customers in more than 100 countries. This being said, I believe one of two events could occur. In my opinion, the second event has a greater probability of happening than the first.

1) Citi eventually restructures and works they way through their exposure to risky assets, and deteriorating credit problems internationally as well as here in the US. Given the extent of these problems, it's a 50/50 bet as to whether they can regain the earnings power it once had.

If CitiGroup had been a regional bank, it would have probably been seized by the Federal Government. Given the politics behind the curtain, and all the powerful players involved, Citi has been saved from this embarrassment, and is probably being restructured to be acquired by someone like Goldman Sachs who was allowed to become a bank holding company during the credit crisis.

Here is the Goldman Sachs connection;

Goldman Sachs is a powerful force in government, as well as Wall Street. Many of its former employees have secured top level jobs in government, politics, and corporations around the globe. Their ability to pull strings, put people in high places, and crush their competition is truly amazing to watch. And, they always take care of their own.

2) Goldman Sachs (or someone else) buys CitiGroup

- In the case of CitiGroup, former Treasury Secretary, Hank Paulsen was once Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Goldman Sachs. Former Citigroup advisor, Robert Rubin- who was paid $62 million in fees between 2004 and 2007- was also a former Treasury Secretary, and another chairman at Goldman Sachs.

- In October 2008, when the credit crisis was in full bloom, news broke that Treasury Secretary Hank Paulsen, tried to get Citigroup and Goldman Sachs to merge.

- Later that month, the Financial Times broke a story that Goldman Sachs CEO, Lloyd Blankfein, did indeed call Citigroup CEO, Vikram Pandit, to discuss a merger.

What I believe happened, and I have no solid evidence to support this, is Blankfein and Pandit were merely talking to lay the groundwork for an eventual merger. CitiGroup needed to make several strategic moves to clear the way before a deal could get done.

-First, Goldman had no interest in owning an operating a retail brokerage operation. The risks were high, and the rewards were low. So, Citigroup sold 51% of Smith Barney to Morgan Stanley.

In a twist of irony, I read today where Sen. John McCain introduced legislation that would ban investment banks, and commercial banks from engaging in retail brokerage activities.

-Secondly, CitiGroup had to be removed from the DJIA (Dow 30 stocks) so an eventual merger could be looked at as a strategic alliance, and not a takeover of a global financial powerhouse. CitiGroup is no longer a Dow stock.

- Thirdly, if Goldman bought CitiGroup, it would wipe out a big competitor. When former Treasury Secretary, Hank Paulsen, provided a portion of the TARP funds to CitiGroup and not Bear Sterns and Lehman Brothers, he was essentially wiping out the competition for Goldman Sachs.

- Forth, In August 2009, the CEO's of Citibank, N.A., and Latin America bought 1 million shares each at 43.41, and $3.21 respectively. Other purchases have taken place as well.

- Fifth, is hedge fund manager John Paulson's humongous purchase of CitiGroup stock. Paulson bought 300 million shares of Citigroup, while selling all its shares in Goldman Sachs.

For those familiar with what happens to company shares during a buyout know that most of the time the shares of the company being acquired goes up, while the shares of the buyer goes down.

- The sixth and final point is CitiGroup's is trying to return TARP money. While it's being reported that it won't be easy, the deal will eventually get done.

Because of the points made above, we are adding CitiGroup to the Dynamic Growth Under Loved, and Under Appreciated Stock List (Value).

Checkout the other Goldman Sachs Connections and Alumni

Ed Liddy of AIG, former Vice Chairman of Goldman Sachs.

John Thain, former CEO of Merrill Lynch (now BAC) was co-President at Goldman Sachs.

Robert Steel, interim CEO of Wachovia (now Wells Fargo) was a former Goldman Vice Chairman.

Neal Kashkari, head of the $700 billion Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP), VP at Goldman Sachs.

Robert Zoellick, head of the World Bank, was a managing director of Goldman Sachs.

Mario Draghai, who is leading the European Union response to the crisis is another Vice President of Goldman Sachs.

Jon Corzine, former New Jersey Governor, former Chairman and co-CEO of Goldman Sachs.

I'm just follwing the money. It's amazing where it will take you.

"You know what the news is-- in a minute, you're going to hear the rest of the story"- Paul Harvey

To access the "Weekly Briefing", go to the "Newsletter" link at the top of the page and sign in by establishing your own username and password.

Several new features have been added including a list of our Top Growth Stocks, a list of Under Appreciated Value Stocks, and enhancements to our ETF and Fidelity Sector Fund portfolios.

The rules are different for us- "The Serf's", and the real rulers of our country -"The King's". Let's see you try this;

Morgan Stanley:

Bloomberg;

Morgan Stanley plans to relinquish five San Francisco office buildings to its lender two years after purchasing them from Blackstone Group LP near the top of the market.

“This isn’t a default or foreclosure situation,” Barnes said. “We are going to give them the properties to get out of the loan obligation.”

CitiGroup:

Washington Post;

The Internal Revenue Service, an arm of Treasury, ruled last Friday that Citigroup could keep $38 billion in tax breaks that otherwise would decline in value as the government sells its stake in the company. Federal law lets companies shelter profits from taxes in good years based on the amount of losses in previous bad years. But the law restricts the use of past losses if a company changes hands, to discourage profitable companies from buying unprofitable firms to avoid paying taxes.

Treasury officials said the government needed to grant the tax break in order to sell its shares in Citigroup because the company could not afford the loss. Officials also said that preserving the tax break would help the government sell its shares at a higher price. And they said the law was never intended to apply to deals involving the government.

Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) is very angry, but is also considered a "lightweight" to the power elite.

We need to understand that America is dominated by a tight group of families and financial organizations with a globalist agenda. They could care less about the concerns and needs of everyday Americans.

This is why they have the ability to pick and choose politicians who say one thing on the campaign trail, and do another when they get into office. It's not about you, it's about them!

To access the "Weekly Briefing", go to the "Newsletter" link at the top of the page and sign in by establishing your own username and password.

Several new features have been added including a list of our Top Growth Stocks, a list of Under Appreciated Value Stocks, and enhancements to our ETF and Fidelity Sector Fund portfolios.

Today, we are selling Synovus Financial (SNV) out of the Under Loved, and Under Appreciated Stock List (Value) at price of $2.02 for a 38% gain. The financial picture for SNV is not very clear to us, and despite the opportunity for further gains, the risks remain too high for us to make an accurate judgement.

We are also making changes to the Fidelity Select Sector Fund Portfolio, the Top Stock Portfolio (Momentum), as well as our Top 10 ETF list.

To access these changes, go to the "Newsletter" link at the top of the page and sign up by establishing your own username and password.

"You know what the news is-- in a minute, you're going to hear the rest of the story"- Paul Harvey

The weekly newsletter briefing was posted to the "Newsletter" portion of the website earlier today. To access the "Weekly Briefing", go to the "Newsletter" link at the top of the page and sign in by establishing your own username and password.

The major market indexes closed higher for a sixth-day on light holiday volume. Despite today's news from a MasterCard Advisors unit (SpendingPulse) saying that retail sales advanced 3.6% this holiday season, the evidence suggests sales are still way off their torrid pace of 2006-2007.

Bear market rallies can be very rewarding, and so far, the S&P 500 has retraced about 50% off the losses from the March lows of 666.

The key levels we are watching will give us a good ideas of where the market is going. If by Thursday's close, the major indexes close above the key levels identified below, we think the market can climb much higher than many are expecting.

Key Levels:

DJIA: A close above 10,800 by year-end will be a major positive, and suggests we could see a much stronger move to the upside. This level could clear the path for a move to 11,500 fairly quickly.

S&P 500: A close above 1140 on the S&P would also be a very positive sign. This could clear the way for a move up to the 1220 level.

NASDAQ: The NASDAQ has been stuck in a 10 year bear market, just like the one we have now forecast for real estate. The NASDAQ has seen numerous rallies, but still remains way below the highs of 2000.

The NASDAQ has already broken above key resistance levels, and looks poised to lead, particularly after the 10 year anniversary of its crash which occurred in March of 2000.

In January, I am looking for a 10% correction that could immediately, or certainly by mid month.