Commentary on the market’s victory over everything, the IMF’s forecasting record, how the big banks are destroying the American economy, the looming global food crisis, the credit bubble keeps getting bigger, and the lovely AR-15 has been available for civilian sale since 1963.

How much?

The Times Literary Supplement -- When everything’s for sale
Michael J. Sandel begins briskly. Today, he says, almost everything is up for sale.

Oliver! -- Boy For Sale

Two economists said of economic forecasting, ‘economists forecast to make astrology respectable’, and the other that the best forecasts were ‘100% memorable and 51% right’, Galbraith coined the first, but I can’t recall the name of the second.

Economist -- Ballpark economics
ON JULY 16th the IMF released its new forecasts for the world economy. It currently expects global growth of 3.5% in 2012 and 3.9% in 2013.

Too big to fail and too big to jail is too big.

Washington Blog -- Failing to Break Up the Big Banks is Destroying America
Pulitzer prize-winning journalist Ron Suskind quotes Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner as saying: ‘The confidence in the system is so fragile still… a disclosure of a fraud… could result in a run, just like Lehman.’
In other words, Geither said that the big bankers are “too big to jail”, because disclosing any portion of their massive fraud would cause bank runs.

When corn can’t have sex the world starves.

Financial Times -- World braced for new food crisis
The world is facing a new food crisis as the worst US drought in more than 50 years pushes agricultural commodity prices to record highs.

Doug Noland’s Great Credit Bubble is just getting bigger.

Prudent Bear -- Risk On, Risk Off and the Spanish/Chinese Tug of War
‘Global macro” has of late been relegated more of a backseat role, with earnings and market “technicals” driving a largely upbeat marketplace. 

Bang, bang.

Montreal Gazette -- Authorities: Colorado theatre shooting suspect legally purchased all 4 guns in past 2 months
James Holmes is accused of carrying out one of the worst mass shootings in recent U.S. history, but police say there was nothing illegal about the guns and ammunition he allegedly used during a Colorado movie theatre attack.

 

Bushmaster AR-15 Assault Rifle - The Weapon of Choice
The AR-15 is a lightweight, 5.56 mm, air-cooled, gas-operated, magazine-fed semi-automatic rifle, with a rotating-lock bolt, actuated by direct impingement gas operation or long/short stroke piston operation. The AR-15 was first built by ArmaLite as a selective fire assault rifle for the United States armed forces. Because of financial problems, ArmaLite sold the AR-15 design to Colt. The select-fire AR-15 entered the US military system as the M16 rifle. Colt then marketed the Colt AR-15 as a semi-automatic version of the M16 rifle for civilian sales in 1963.