Double Dips Tuesday- Chicago PMI 'Drops Like Big Rock'; Case Shiller Index Confirms Double Dip In Housing; Food Stamp Usage At Another Record; UN Says US Dollar May Collapse; Fukushima Explosions Raise Questions; Much More

How many overpaid Wall Street analysts does it take to calculate the Chicago PMI and still get it wrong by orders of magnitude? The answer is "too many to count." One look at the PMI debunks any hype about any economic recovery here in the US that you see spewed on CNBS or any other main stream media outlet. In fact, the data (if accurate and not downwardly revised next month, a la BLS) shows business activity (rather, business inactivity) dropped the most since Lehman Brother imploded and the second most in 30 years, coming in at 56.6 on expectations (by those overpaid anal cysts analysts) of 62.0. Not even close. You didn't really think the triple catastrophes in Japan were bullish, right? Oh, never mind - you better not answer that.

Moving on to more bull... bullish economic data, the Case Shiller S&P 20 city housing index came in at - drum roll please - negative 3.61%, putting home prices at levels not seen since 2002. In other words, a flood of people just went underwater with their mortgages and have joined the list of millions of Americans/Canadians/Europeans who will be paying more for a home than it is worth - with no end in sight. This Christmas, the new theme song will be "Jingle Keys."

Want more? How about the latest data from the SNAP program which shows now a record 44 million Americans are on the food stamp program. This write up from the Burning Platform is a nice cheery piece on the situation. Of course all of this is bullish for the stock markets as they rally today on nothing but a little optimism that Greece, a nation with a GDP the size of one county in California is getting another bailout. At the same time, the United Nations has issued a warning that the end of the US dollar is coming. Nothing like the decimation of your currency to get the markets into a rally. Did you check out the latest price of Toll Brothers stock? Do it just for a good solid laugh.

Alas, all of this comes as record insider stock sales occur on a weekly basis and record bonuses are issued to the very bankers that sparked this mess to begin with. Yet, none of that really matters when you consider that Fukushima is spiraling out of control. Soil samples taken far from the plant show levels of radiation skyrocketing. Worse than Chernobyl? On the orders of magnitude worse.

Finally, an as of yet unknown explosion occurred at reactor 4 today. TEPCO blames a gas line. We blame TEPCO.

Theatrical Thursday- Greenpeace Slams Japan As Marine Samples Outside Territory Indicate Radiation 60 Times Limits, As Yet Another Leak Discovered; Here Come The Birth Defects As Mutated Bunny Is Born Without Ears; Japanese Parents Furious Over Gov't Lies, Propaganda; Higher Levels Of Iodine 131 Detected Indicates Continual Leakage And Fussion; Super Typhoon Songda Heading For Fukushima; Next AIG? Insurers Face Record Losses From Catastrophes; "British Workers Are Lazy," So Says Ratan Tata As He Cuts 1500 Jobs In The UK; Much More

Who needs to go to the movies anymore to see radioactive mutant freaks? Who needs to read a Dan Brown novel to get a good conspiracy? Who needs to read a comic strip to get a good laugh? These days, with the sequential catastrophic events taking place and the circus clowns that run the show fumbling around like a cheap circus act, the answer is no one. That's correct - we have all the comedy, drama and theatrics we need right here in front of us, as if we live in a real Twilight Zone and we are spectators turned participants. Pick your poison:

Radioactive Mutant Freaks 
We all know the story of Godzilla and the metaphor that it stands for. Ironically, real radioactive mutant freaks are being discovered slowly as time goes by and the impact of radiation (not the healthy kind a la Ann Coulter) is seen on the environment. Case in point - the first earless bunny ever, born a few days ago outside of the evacuation zone. Uh oh! The original video commentary reads:

"After the nuclear accident, government and the media said there was no immediate effect on the health. But in the town of Namie Tsushima, which is outside the 30 kilometer area or outside the mandatory evacuation zone, it happened. So far as there has been no news about this kind, it certainly makes one suspect that the government is deliberately making an effort to keep news of the radiation leak a secret. The rabbits, which are housed in an outdoor bunny pen, are eating wild grass, which resulted in earless bunny's birth. This is the first anomaly/deformation ever born. Life cycle of a bunny is quicker than humans. As I am wondering if humans will be the next victim, I imagine the future picture of human babies." 

Let's say that again - UH OH! It is only a matter of time before human babies which develop much slower than rabbits are born with defects and given this incredible biological deformation, it's a given. We told you so. Get out of dodge people. Read the commentary again and pass it along.

Good Conspiracy

We (the informed people of Fiat's Fire) already know about Japan forbidding GreenPeace to take water and marine samples within its water territories and we can assume it is because they do not want them to ring the alarm bell with their findings. What are they hiding? Fortunately, GreenPeace was able to take samples outside the 12 mile territorial zone and the results are alarming. Highly contaminated water and marine life - up to 60 times the safe limit were found and as this Reuters article points out, they slammed Japan for it. The same article also points out that yet another leak has been discovered. [Insert Goofy voice, again] "Well gee golly Mickey, we would have never known about that. I mean Arnie Gundersen has been saying this for weeks now and since they are finding ever higher levels of radioactive iodine 131, it goes without saying." See, even Goofy knows basic science. No need to read a comic book. Now we know why they were not allowed to take samples within the 12 mile territory. The levels there must be thousands of times higher.

Drama
We were not surprised that the good Asimo robots Japanese people have been so calm for so long - until now, that is. Finally, after months of "rogue citizens" reporting high radiation levels, after months of "rumors" about what really happened, after the first ever earless deformed rabbit is born, now parents are demanding answers and they're getting rowdy. It's only a matter of time before the first child with three eyes is born and the T-1000's turn on their makers. Calling Skynet, time for a new model.

Tear Jerker 
In a possible turn for the worst, a Super Typhoon named "Songda" is heading right for Fukushima. Of course, Typhoons are quite common and it was only a matter of time before the season swung into high gear. This could be it. Not even a circus tent will keep the radiation from spreading all over Japan. Keep your eyes on this one. Updates will be here when available so check back and grab the Kleenex box. You might need it.

Comedy

For all the laughs you need, read the recent Ransquawk headlines from the IMF and ECB going back and forth about Greece, Ireland, the viability (or rather the lack of) of the Euro, and the economy in general. Ready? Grab the popcorn, sit back and enjoy the show.

Lights. Camera. Action! [Insert Circus Music Let it play while reading the following, seriously]

IMF's Blanchard says "no country obviously overheating, including China" (And we thought 20% Unemployment was too hot)

IMF's Blanchard says "more official funding for Greece will be needed; Greek recession deeper than IMF predicted" (Say it ain't so! [cough!] Endless money pit) 

IMF's Blanchard says "Greek debt restructuring is not inevitable, and Greek debt restructuring wouldn't affect world recovery in substantial way" (Maybe because there is no recovery to begin with)

Irish finance minister says "Ireland would suffer serious contagion whatever happens in Greece" (But wait, that IMF guy just said it wouldn't affect... oh never mind)

EU's Juncker says "Italy, Belgium not at risk" (We couldn't tell from the bond yields and CDS spreads)

IMF's Blanchard says "Greek adjustment programme has not completely derailed, and Greek economy will need an "adjustment period" of 10 years" (Glad to know it has not "completely derailed," just 99% derailed, and that Greece only needs 10 more years. By then, Hu who will be at the helm of this Titanic?)

ECB's Gonzalez-Paramo says "crisis still unfolding, cannot tell with certainly how economic and financial system will function in future" (Is this code word for the end of the financial system is near?)

IMF's Blanchard says "end of US Fed's QE2 policy would be 'minor event' for world economy" (Sure, and Fukushima was 'bullish' for the global economy)

IMF's Blanchard says "US economic recovery weak, housing market to remain 'dead' for a while" (So we've got a homeless, jobless "recovery" for another what, 10 years?)

Sci-fi, or Not So Sci-fi

Radioactive earless mutant rabbits capable of stomping out entire cities in a single leap could be one reason underground bunkers are all the rage nowadays. But it also could be because this so-called "comet" Elenin that is supposed to come around September - November is not a comet after all. It's scary to think, it could be as this "sky watcher" video using NASA JPL data suggests is, indeed a brown dwarf star. That would explain several unexplainable events including the recent spike in huge earthquakes, anomalies and why although detected as having a huge mass the size of Jupiter, it is not entirely visible. For you science buffs, it's a must watch video.

Reality TV

Ratan Tata, the owner of TATA industries is going to ax 1500 jobs in the UK because British workers are "lazy and unwilling to go the extra mile." Of course, he forgot to mention the real reason he is cutting those jobs - profit margins! Why pay someone £40 per hour when you can pay an indentured servant Indian worker in India £40 a year? Do the math.

Reality is hitting home as the impacts of all these bullish catastrophes around the world hit insurers. Of course, this is why Warren Buffet said to buy insurers. You don't need a Harvard degree or an overpaid job at Goldman Sachs to know there will be several more "AIG" bailouts lurking at every corner from Wall Street to Bangkok. No one even knows the impact of Fukushima (other than Warren Buffet who said it is bullish for the economy) on insurers and re-insurers like, Munich Re. And guess who's got a stake in that big boy? Not me.

Finally, in a mix of everything comical, the US 1Q GDP came it at - drum roll please - 1.8%. Now, if you consider that M1 money supply is pushing 12%, well, you can do the math. Guess Hu's who is paying that difference?

Wait A Minute Wednesday- Fukushima Meltdown Worse Than Chernobyl; Highest Levels Of Cesium In California Milk; TEPCO Says Containment Vessels "May Be Leaking" And Other "Surprises"; 70,000 More Must Evacuate Around Fukushima; Radtiation Levels At Reactor 1 Skyrocket, Much More; Greece Inches Towards Default, Seeks Way Out Of EU; Durable Goods Data Not So Durable; Gold Shines Again; US Debt Ceiling Catastrophe; Much More

After a short hiatus, we're back - and not surprised to see that the circus continues through the night. If you exit the main event for just a minute, you'll see a smaller tent attached to the main tent with the words, "TEPCO." A peek inside reveals some very interesting tidbits of juicy information; the Deputy Director at the Russian Institute for Nuclear Engineering said yesterday, "Fukushima is worse than Chernobyl." This is perhaps even more interesting because that assessment was made before last night's announcement by TEPCO that the containment chambers are leaking at all three reactors and meltdown has occurred. Act surprised. Then watch this. Observe date.

Of course, we reported that the situation at Fukushima was far worse than reported and it has taken them months to slowly admit the truth. Why? As this excellent write up in the Washington Post points out, “Tepco may have wanted to avoid panic," but "now people are used to the situation.” This pattern should be very obvious by now. 

If you connect the dots, you can see that the radiation readings taken by citizens right after the catastrophe indicated very clearly that the worst case scenario occurred before TEPCO even admitted to a problem. In fact, the handling of this whole situation is no longer comical - it's a tragic. For example, last week TEPCO made the public announcement that reactors 1 through 4 would not be able to be used any longer. That in itself says it all about their handling of this situation. Along the same tragic lines, today TEPCO announced that there are holes in the reactors; and yet the radiation readings of 200 Sv/h (that is an astounding two hundred Sievets per hour!) at the drywell of reactor 1 did not already confirm that. We're no nuclear experts, but with the little knowledge we are armed with, know that indeed Fukushima is "Chernobyl on steroids." Gee, maybe they should have evacuated the 70,000 people months ago like we said instead of waiting until now. Why wait? Oh, that's right - people tend to become desensitized over time and thus the reality of the situation doesn't hit home.

While reactor 1 is getting all of the attention lately because of the recent "discoveries," the facts remain that reactors 2 and 3 have experienced full meltdown and the worst is yet to come. This video analysis made by a concerned citizen and blogger says more about what really occurred than 200 "official" TEPCO reports. So unless TEPCO has real circus clowns running the place, they're not telling the truth. Connect the dots - it's much, much worse than reported. And this should concern every person around the world because record levels of Cesium 137 are being discovered in California milk as a study by Berkley University shows. Why is this alarming? Because it shows that for every 1.2 quarts (~1.4 liters) of milk you drink in California, you receive the equivalent dose of radiation as one gets flying from NY to LA roundtrip. Being that Cesium 137 has a long half life and that it's cumulative - it's bad news.

In other radioactive news, the global financial systems are in a meltdown of their own:
- Greece has just about reached their own tipping point of default. That doesn't mean they won't ask for another tranche of their, "loan." As Reuters is reporting, that's exactly what they are doing. It's so bad that even EU insiders doubt they can last another month.
- The US Fed now holds a whopping $1.5 Trillion in US bonds, but Hu's who's counting?
- US debt is growing far faster than the radioactive "economy" is glowing "growing."
- The US has breached the debt ceiling (Shhhh! Don't tell you know Hu who!) Absent MSM.
- Durable Goods orders plummeted 3.6% (and this is with the bullish events from Japan and QE2)
- UK economy "grew" 0.5%, while inflation "grew" 4.7%. Do the math.
- Gold sets new highs priced in Euros. 
- European industrial orders plummet. 
- The impact of storms and catastrophes around the world have yet to realized on an already hyperinflationary food chain.

That's some food for thought.

Fishy Fry Day- Dead Sharks Wash Ashore In California While Pods Of Pilot Whales Attempt To Strand Themselves; Japan Promotes Itself As Safe For Tourists While Radiation Levels 5 Times Higher Than Reported By The Gov't Is Detected In Tokyo; TEPCO To Shutdown 4 Damaged Reactors; Korean News Reporter Exposed To 148 mSv, Cell Damaged Confirmed; TEPCO Chief Resigns; Greece Gets Downgraded, Again; Spanish Protest Take Turn; Zimbabwe Launches Gold Standard, Others To Follow; Much More

Editor's Note
There will be no updates 5/21-5/24. We will return on 5/25. Thank you.

Updates
Update 1: Spanish protests turning into revolution.

Main Article
Where shall we begin today? How about in the radioactive oceans. Strange things have been happening recently and while the experts like to claim swamp gas as the answer to everything, we like to connect the dots. For example, over past month, dozens of Leopard sharks have been washing ashore in California and this time they're washing up in more places. Autopsy results shows internal bleeding. Now, several thousands of miles away in England, Pilot whales are washing ashore injured. It is known that sick and injured whales are known to beach themselves to die so they don't expect to live long. Why? We'll see soon enough what the results are from the whales, but polluted and/or radioactive oceans are certainly a possibility. At least with the sharks, it's been confirmed that they died of internal bleeding and with the millions of gallons of radioactive water pouring into the oceans... well, let's not speculate too much.

Of course the facts have been speaking for themselves since day one of this catastrophe despite the denial and lies from officials. High levels of radiation were picked up by regular citizens armed with geiger counters soon after the catastrophe, yet official readings were still very low. What accounts for the discrepancy? According to an article in Zasshi News Japan via Energy News, experts have detected radiation levels 5 times higher in Tokyo than what the gov't was reporting. It goes without saying, it's better to be on the safe side. Another article today in Energy News highlights an article published on Yahoo News Japan which is about a Korean news caster who returned from Fukushima after just 3 days and Tokyo after two months and had radiation exposure of 148 mSv which caused damage on the cellular level after a chromosome analysis. Uh oh. This is just the tip of the radioactive iceberg.

With that in mind, it's more than unethical morally disgusting fishy Japan is now promoting itself as a safe place to travel for tourists and the Chairman for Toshiba electronics, Atsutoshi Nishida is the spokesman. "Would-be visitors do not have to worry about the effects on their health," he said adding that he is concerned that the world has wrong information about accidents at the radiation-leaking Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant and asked other countries to help prevent unfounded rumors on the crisis from scaring away would-be visitors. Oh, don't worry Mr. Nishida-son - the radiation detectors in shipping ports being set off 12,000 miles away is doing that for you. Say, Mr. Nishida-son, money wouldn't have anything to do with this death invitation, would it? 

For those keeping an eye on the timeline of events, try to see where this fits in. The gist - "a monitoring post on the perimeter of the plant about 1.5 kilometers (1 mile) from the No. 1 reactor went off at 3:29 p.m., minutes before the station was overwhelmed by the tsunami... the monitor was set to go off at high levels of radiation, an official said."

Of course, this wouldn't be a Fry-Day without circus comedy and it doesn't get better than this - "Tepco To Permanently Shut Down 4 Damaged Reactors Gee, you know, I thought that these reactors were salvageable...

If you zoom in on that little red point in the upper corner you can see what looks to be a sign which reads:  

For Sale By Owner: 4 Nuclear Reactors. Low Level Radiation Leaks. Only 40 Years of Service. Well Maintained. Need Some Work. $14.2 Trillion OBO. Please Call (***)-***-****

Maybe it's just me. Bad eyes you know. Wait! Hold the presses! The CEO of TEPCO unexpectedly resigns and says the "firm's future is uncertain." Really? We thought this whole thing was bullish for the global economy. 

In other radioactive news, Greece gets downgraded again with risk of further downgrades. Gee, really Captain Obvious? Did you go to the same school as TEPCO execs? Of course, that's not news to us. We called that weeks ago before the last downgrade. duh! #winning! We're sure the daily riots and general strikes will help boost that economy as it's doing in Spain as thousands protest the horrible conditions. Where have we seen that before? Bingo! No ouzo for you! Downgrades coming to a siesta near you. 

Speaking of downgrades, Zimbabwe has indirectly downgraded the US to junk status as it says the US dollar is "no longer stable." Reason? Inflation. And who else better to give a lesson in inflation than the one country that has a record in the Guiness Book of World's Records for hyperinflation in 2008? Yes folks, the circus must go on. 

Weakest Link Thursday- LinkedIn Prices IPO At Astronomical $45/share, Trades At $90/share In 2 Minutes; ECB Threatens Greece, Fails; Sign Of The Times? Students Consider Prostitution To Pay For School; Europe Demands Next IMF Head To Be European, While China Demands Next IMF Head To Be Asian; Initial Claims, LOL; Fukushima Updates Galore; Much More

Updates
Update 1: 3M CEO plans to sell 1/3 of his company's stock. I guess he sees the economy recovering. 

Update 2: LNKD is now trading over $120. No comment necessary.

Update 3: BBC Viewpoint on future of TEPCO. Turn out the lights.

Update 4: Those are fightin' words. Speech about Syria, yada yada yada.  

Update 5: Here's a shocker - LinkedIn CEO "very comfortable" with stock price. Not quite sure if words can describe what I'm feeling now.

Update 6: duh! #winning! I get it now. LNKD is pricing in Weimar Republic inflation. It all makes sense now. 

Main Article
By now, nearly every investor the world over knows that "the markets" (or whatever is left of them) are entirely bogus. Fundamentals no longer matter one iota, as every stock is "priced" on the condition if "Quantitative Easing" will continue or not. We would like all of our readers to consider these two points and then draw your own conclusion. The first point - Insider sales for the week ending Fry-Day the 13th amounted to $1.025 Billion. The second point - The much hyped LinkedIn (NYSE: LNKD) IPO was priced at $45, and within 2 minutes traded to $90.

With that in mind, "the markets" continue to grind higher and higher, pushing already extreme P/E ratios even further into the realm of fraud preposterous. Certainly, insiders know more about their perspective companies than "the markets" do and that would explain the absurd amount of insider selling. ZeroHedge once again gives an accurate synopsis of what is going on and helps to show that "the markets" have become nothing but a giant, limitless ATM for insiders of Wall Street while everyone else sucks wind. If you needed confirmation of sucking wind, look no further than every hyped up IPO in the past 2 years of "quantitative easing." Today's incongruous award goes to LinkedIn. The company, which valued their stock at $45/share, saw this morning, with the help of limitless fiat money, the price soar to $90 in 2 minutes. Why? Because P/E ratios of 500x (five hundred) earnings are not high enough - you need P/E ratios of 1063x (One thousand sixty three). After all, a company that had net income of $8 Million should be worth $8.5 Billion. Right? The insiders who have become instant multimillionaires thank the Bernank and the future retail sheep who will lap it up like a camel at an oasis. We find that the bookies underwriters are non other than JP Morgan, Bank of America and Morgan Stanley. We're surprised not to see Goldman's hand in this valuation. After all, they are great at "workin' it."

Speaking of workin' it, the ECB is really workin' Greece today, playing them like a used flute violin at a circus school concert. Did we mention that the next chapter of the comedy is being written right now as the ECB threatens Greece. That's correct. The ECB told Greece in no uncertain terms that they would stop accepting Greek bonds as "collateral" (Laughing out loud) if they restructure. It seems, the ECB knows their days are numbered their usefulness would be in question if Greece restructures (read: defaults). Another day, another joke on the people of Greece and Germany because in the end, Greece will be forced to restructure.

Speaking of Germany, a new study in Berlin shows that 1 in 3 students would consider sex work to pay for their education. Another "sign of the times?"

Since we're still on the subject of Europe, another circus sideshow interesting event to watch over there in the old world is, Hu who gets to pick the next IMF head.? The EU is demanding that the IMF head comes from the EU (despite being HQ'd in the US of A). Funny, because China is demanding suggesting that the new IMF head should come from someone of the "New World Order." Translated from Mandarin into English, that roughly means someone from China, or at least someone from Asia. Bumping head seems to be a pastime at the IMF. Pay no attention to the 10yr Greek bond yields - 16.31.% and rising - their exploding for fun.

Initial claims is a joke is out today and while the MSM headlines are all cheering the 29k less people that applied for unemployment versus the upwardly revised data from the week before (which invalidates the data), the reality is still alarming - nearly every week over 400k people still apply for unemployment benefits. Needless to say, 50k people fall off the payrolls every week as well so they are no longer even counted as unemployed. Further, we guarantee with 99.99% certainty, this week's figure will be revised upward next week but not a peep about that in the MSM. So much for "statistic errors."

Now you probably already know why gold and silver will go "to the moon, Alice!" Let's review. There's two ways this can go and both lead to higher gold and silver. In one scenario, QE2 ends in June because of you know Hu who. That will spike interest rates as Treasuries collapse, which in turn collapse whatever remains of housing. In the other scenario, QE3 is launched, and the money flows like wine at an Italian wedding. See the picture? (Not giving any advice here, just stating two possible scenarios).

Finally to the news that really matters, Fukushima. You already knew about the 2 nursing women back in April that had radioactive iodine-131 in their breast milk. Now, an MSM article from JapanToday is reporting that 7 women have radioactive substances in their milk. Five of those women were from Tokyo and two were from Fukushima/Irabaki. The "small amounts of radioactive substances" were of course cesium and iodine. Although the levels were small, it shows that indeed radiation is seeping all across Japan and since radiation is cumulative, well you connect the dots. Small amounts over long periods of time add up to large amounts. Basic math.

Also of interest is news that radiation levels at reactor 3 are rising. Why would they be rising, unless re-criticality is occurring as Arnie Gundersen reports and TEPCO denies. Basic math again comes into play.

Our daily read of Energy News results in this gem of a find - "Fukushima worker is told his internal radiation level is 30,000 cpm." Let's see - normal internal radiation levels for nuclear workers is "several hundred to 1,000 cpm." This worker has a reading of 30,000 cpm. No worries however. Japan has raised the legal limit to 500,000 cpm to ensure everyone is getting healthy doses. Welcome to the club, new members.

Loco Wednesday- Spain In Pain As Thousands Protest About Poor Conditions; Greece To Double Austerity Measures, Fail Anyways; Portugal Gets Bailout Approval, Investors Don't Buy It; US May Sell Gold To Keep Lights On; USPS Has 4 Months Remaining; And Now, Everything Fukushima- Radioactive Water Dumping US Request, TEPCO Misled Everyone, Nuclear Physicist: Most of The Fallout From Plutonium MOX Fuel Will Drop On US, Unless Winds Change, Much More

Updates
Update 1: Spanish protests being called the Spanish Revolution. Waiting for NATO to start bombing.

Main Article
Today's news begins with a tale of two cities. One, in the city of Madrid, Spain where the unemployment situation among youths is beyond recoverable. The other, in the city of Exarcheia, Greece where violent protests are a daily occurrence. As the protests in Spain are just getting started, there is very little coverage about this in the MSM, but from this video, you can see the people are not happy (Note: The people are chanting "No democracy, only sh*t!) Aside from that, the one article today from the BBC does provide a small glimpse into the action with the title "Spanish youth rally in Madrid echoes Egypt protests." Of course, those following the developments across the European (Dis)Union already know social tensions are running high and the situation is deteriorating rapidly. As we reported two months ago, the situation in Greece is the one to keep your eye on in particular, because Greece was the first member of the PIIGS and the one that started it all - May flash crash, followed by a bankster bailout. Not only did that bailout create the greatest moral hazard since Guantanamo, it set a precedent allowing the other PIIGS to embrace bailouts. Ironically, the bailouts which were meant to keep the banksters rich public employed came with stipulations in the form of austerity of the public. The cause of the riots? Austerity. With that knowledge, what is Greece planning on doing now? Doubling austerity measures. We're certain that this will be followed by a doubling of riots and social unrest as well, just as we predicted months ago would occur. Using a formula from physics, we know for every action there is a reaction. Well, duh! #winning!

Of course, everyone with half a radioactive brain knows that simply giving an alcoholic another beer will not help him recover from his addiction. Yet, somehow the ECB thinks it will, as they have approved a bailout for Portugal (that will be followed by an endless line of bailouts a la Greece). Global bond investors are not fooled by this scheme however, as bond yields have once again gone higher than before the bailout agreement last week. duh! #winning!

In other radioactive news, as we reported the US reached its debt ceiling on Monday and is now using every last resort it has to keep the lights on. Selling office chairs, robbing tapping Federal pension funds and even now the possible selling of gold in Ft. Knox. Of course that will be the absolute last resort, but it may come down to that in a few weeks. Let's hope not. We don't think selling the only tangible thing the rest of the world views as valuable is a good thing. What would be left? Say, what's a nuclear weapon worth these days? We've got plenty of those and there are plenty of people/rouge nations with deep pockets willing to buy for sure. Sounds like the plot of a good old James Bond movie, doesn't it?

Here's an update on last week's article about the USPS being insolvent; if you needed any more confirmation to that fact. Give it three to four months.

And now, we present to you, the only news that matters but seems to get little to no attention by the MSM - Fukushima. Let's begin with this doozy of a news piece from the Japanese Jiji Press, which claims the US pressured TEPCO to release the radioactive water into the ocean on April 4th. The whole Fukushima story becomes more bizarre everyday but now the pieces of the puzzle are starting to come together - the final picture is not looking good.

If one doozy like that was not enough for you, here's another doozy of an article, from Bloomberg of all places, entitled "Tepco Misleading Public Over Nuclear Crisis." The title says it all but we have to say that Bloomberg is two months too late to the party if they think they are providing a revelation. Here is yet another handy dandy radiation monitor of Japan which says you may want to get out of dodge, for 11.4 million years a short period of time. So keep an eye on that monitor if what this nuclear physicist is true, because if so then the next place to get out of dodge will be the entire Northern Hemisphere. Akira Tokuhiro says "most of the fallout from plutonium-containing MOX fuel will drop on U.S., unless very strong winds take it elsewhere." For those of you paying attention, reactor 3 was filled with MOX fuel a few weeks before the March 11th catastrophe. Reactor 4 is leaning badly and that's the one with the Spent Fuel Pool containing loads of the bad stuff. We have to wonder, with reactors 1, 2 and 3 in full meltdown mode, what exactly a circus tent will do in the event of another big earthquake in the area. For those who have studied geology, another big earthquake in that region is a near certainty. For those who are connecting the dots from earthquakes on earth to CME's (solar eruptions) like this one, you know it's only a matter of time before the earth gets hit with a direct hit of plasma energy. Interesting stuff.

Two Head Tuesday- Nearly 3000 Fukushima Evacuees Rushed To Hospitals By Ambulances; Circus Sideshow- Reactor 1 Fuel Rods "Completely Melted," TEPCO Finally Admits 11.4 Million Years Later; Who Says It's All About The Money? - US Urges Japan To Stop Decline Of TEPCO Stock; Play The (Biggest) Fool; Get Your Coffee While You Still Can; Global Housing Is Officially Homeless; UK Inflation Is Off The Geiger Counter; Greece: Already Insolvent, Runs Out Of Time; Portugal Tiptoes; Much More

Updates
Update 1: Something about Israel, yada yada, Obama tells them West Bank settlements illegal, yada yada yada.

Main Article
"Will someone please take out the pliers and pinch me to see if this is all just a nightmare." If you have recently said this to yourself, you're not alone. As the world has gone from insane to surreal, we have to wonder what the future holds for those that are not even slightly aware of the world's current condition; there are more of these people than you think. While we are no longer shocked to see what we already knew months ago confirmed now, like Fukushima experiencing a full meltdown, or Greece being insolvent and two shakes of a lamb's tail away from restructuring (read: defaulting), we do wonder if those in charge of the world think we have two heads but share one half a radioactive brain.

For example, today we learn that nearly 3000 evacuees suffering from "stress and poor hygienic conditions" were rushed to hospitals in ambulances. Stress and poor hygienic conditions? Really? When was the last time you heard of a Katrina evacuee being rushed to the hospital in an ambulance after living in total squalor in a FEMA camp? Yeah, Okey Dokey - like the dozens of sharks that washed ashore dead in California last week died of acute radiation sickness indigestion or swamp gas.

 
Another example is TEPCO finally admitting to us (after 11.4 Million Years) the obvious - the fuel rods are completely melted. [insert Goofy voice] Well gee golly, after looking at the pictures the day after "the event," and watching the faces of TEPCO execs at the press conference, even Mickey Mouse knew that. The experts that have determined this two months later must be the same experts that built a MOX fuel nuclear reactor at sea level, only a few meters from the shore, and then placed the backup generators in the basements below sea level. Genius. We have to wonder if at least they know that open air nuclear fusion releases huge amounts of radiation? We can only hope, but we won't hold our breath.

If you needed any more reasons why rumors have been flying around that Japan wants to move its entire capital capitol out of Tokyo and way out to Osaka, look no further than this report out today which shows radioactive green tea leaves being discovered just outside of Tokyo in Ibaraiki. The results showed 894 becquerels/kilo of cesium-137. Living healthy, never glowed tasted better. "Hey Bob! You have a certain glow about you today. Yeah, Joe. It's the new green tea-137 I've been drinking." Keep drinking that and you might have two heads.

Of course, you are not naive to the fact that everything they do, as Dr. Michio Kaku pointed out yesterday in his interview, is about money. Today, The Japan Times confirms this via Energy News - "The Obama administration urged the Kan gov't to take steps to prevent further decline in TEPCO stock." Shocked yet?  As we said, money over lives.

Hu Who knows what the next radioactive black swan event will be? If I had to take a wild guess, it could be this - a total shortage of coffee, which causes Starbucks sippin' office types to go postal when they can't get their Tall Mocha Latte Thai Chi Kim Chi Shabang Bang coffee in the morning. Just a thought.  Better stock up now before coffee doubles in price again. Remember what the Weimar Republic's chart of food staples looked like?

Speaking of hyperinflation, inflation in the UK has hit another high at 4.5%, more than double the 2% threshold the Bank of England considers "good" for growth. Which begs the question, what are they waiting for? We know. Read it here on ZeroHedge. As we reported numerous times, inflation in the US is here to stay and getting worse. Guess who hurts the most by inflation and guess who benefits the most by inflation? Guess which savvy investors are buying all the gold and silver they can to protect themselves from the evil banksters inflation?

Also getting worse is housing in the US as the story will be buried by the MSM the latest data confirms (Raise your hand if you are shocked...) Let's see - building permits were down 12.8% Year Over Year in April. Check. Housing completions were down 25% YoY. Double Check. And last but not least, the most important indicator, Housing Starts were down 24% YoY. Triple Check. Way to go Dr. Deficit. Your plan to decimate the middle class has succeeded.

Finally, as Fukushima reactor 4 Spent Fuel Pool the world burns, Nero drinks a bottle of Ouzo. As we have reported on and analyzed a dozen times already, Greece is insolvent and has been since at least April 2010. Of course, they will never admit that. Until they are forced to. Reuters is reporting that Greece is considering "soft restructuring" (read: default, sugar coated with poison). Read their official press release to the two headed sheeple global investors. It's like reading the script of a B rated comedy in which an Enron executive admits they are considering selling some office equipment to pay the electric bill while he kicks back in his plush office chair and smokes a Cuban cigar. It's that comical. (Hey, maybe I should become a screen writer)

So. Yes, folks - Greece is quietly warning to the world that they will default, just as we predicted. Are you listening? The repercussions will be felt world wide, but what is necessary is necessary. Math is a great thing. 

Just Another Manic Monday- Full Nuclear Meltdown Confirmed In Reactor 1; Reactors 2 & 3 May Have Also Melted; Moody's Downgrades TEPCO On News, Says "Worse Than Indicated" and Much More On Fukushima; Greek/Irish Redux? Treasury To Tap Federal Pensions To Help Fund Gov't; Gold Never Gets Old: Physical Demand Strong Despite Paper Sell Off; Ahmadinejad Steps In as Oil Ministry Chief; EU In Meltdown, US In Meltdown; Much More

For almost a month, there has been nearly a full media blackout of information about Fukushima, at least from the MSM. It was eerily quite for too long. Then, very slowly, information started to leak like the radiation leaking from the reactors. Now more than two months later, we've got a wave of confirmed "rumors" and information; yet somehow the confirmation of what we already knew is not all that encouraging. On the contrary, we now know the situation has deteriorated extraordinarily during the media blackout. Remember how long it took for Japan to raise the emergency level to 7 when the whole world already had the emergency at a 7?

For example we now know that all the while TEPCO was denying "rumors that cause harm to public morale" like the one about the nuclear fuel melting and going into re-criticality which releases huge amounts of radiation, we find the rumors to be true. Today, TEPCO finally admits to the fact that there was a full core nuclear meltdown (as we determined from the data way back in mid-March). Worse still, highly radioactive substances have been detected in Tokyo at levels that are higher than what was detected around the plant. That re-criticality, or nuclear fission, would explain why ever increasing levels of iodine 131 were being detected all over Japan and even thousands of miles away in California. Dr. Michio Kaku explains the double talk and the circus clowns and scandals."They're trying to protect their investments..." Well said.

The truth of the matter is much more than just "the evacuation zone" will be uninhabitable; some estimates have stated up to 30% of Japan's landmass may be rendered uninhabitable. That's unimaginable. For example, an independent study by an unnamed food manufacturing company discovered high levels of Plutonium over 30 miles (50 km) from Fukushima. That is well beyond the 12 mile evacuation zone. The real kicker is that the results of this study won't be released to the public because of fear of reaction from the public/media. Try spinning that into something bullish. Money over life, boys and girls. What happens when another big earthquake hits Japan? Here's a handy dandy live geiger counter for you east coasters.

In other news, the US is officially Greece Ireland Insolvent Bankrupt out of time (and cash) as Dr. Deficit said last week it would be, as the debt ceiling has been reached. Not breached, just reached. So what now? Take away the gov't pensions to fund the ongoing concern. Yes, you read that correctly - the US is following in the same steps as the other PIIGS by tapping the federal pensions to keep the lights on. So far no word if national monuments will be auctioned off tomorrow to private investors, or Apple. We need a new acronym for the PIIGS - how about PIIGS-R-US? The 'R' can stand for "Recession" or "Ridiculous" for now. Did we mention the EU is in the same sinking boat as the US? Yes we did, many times. Here is your daily update on the situation in Greece and for Portugal. and for Egypt. and for the whole Middle East. Don't miss this little piece about Iran's president taking over as the Oil Ministry Chief. All that conflict and destruction should be worth a few hundred points for the markets today. What do you say, Dr. Deficit?

Of course, what all of this means is that fiat is burning, and gold and silver are shining despite what the paper markets are doing. In fact, as we reported weeks ago when gold and silver started to drop from their highs, physical demand remains very high. Somebody with deep pockets knows. Speaking of deep pockets, the US is "borrowing" $58,000 per second just to keep the lights on. Calling Guiness Book of World Records, we have a new record for you.

Speaking of records, there must be a new one in this list. It'll blow your mind. I like this one in particular - "#20 Last year, China produced 11 times as much steel as the United States did." Meditate on that for a while. Then drink a beer. Or a bottle of Ouzo. That seems to help the PM of Greece.

Fry-Day The 13th- The Greatest Show On Earth, Is Not At The Ringling Bros; TEPCO Sets Up Circus Tent, Invites Clowns From Around The World; Arnie's Got a Good One; Sharks In California Die Of Internal Bleeding; Latest Craze In Russia- Underground Bunkers; Portugal Poops Out; Greece Gets Greased; Tractors For Oxen In The US As Inflationary Pressures Change Demands; Much More

Editor's Note: Blogger software has been having glitches over the day and the entire system was down since Thursday afternoon which has caused many delays in posting. As a result, Thursday's article has vanished along with all comments and user content. As soon as a copy is available, I will repost it.

Updates

Update 1: It's official - there's a big hole in reactor 1. 

Update 2: Wait. No. You've got to be kidding. Stop it. Enter Bozo the clown into circus tent side entrance - "TEPCO searching for 'missing' radioactive water." Stop it. Make it stop!

Main Article

Ladies and Gentlemen, Barnum and Bailey's and Ringling Brothers Circus would like to invite you to the greatest radioactive show on earth! And today, Friday the 13^th, we have a very special treat for you! Our latest additions to the circus, Jose Socrates of Portugal and the entire management board of TEPCO who came all the way from Fukushima are here tonight! Yes, you are all in for a big surprise! So let's get the show started right away. The first act of the night, TEPCO will attempt to set up a circus tent over the leaking reactors. Everyone ready? Put your lead shields on, this one is gonna be a nail biter!

Not to belittle by any means the seriousness of the situation over in Japan (and over in Europe), but it all sometimes seems surreal; as if we live in a Twilight Zone episode in which we can't escape. Of course, you know by now (if you have been paying attention to this blog) the catastrophe in Japan is far from over – it's getting worse. True to it's form, TEPCO has been releasing vital information to the public in coded secret messages, during the quite hours of the night, so as not to create a stir. For example, in Arnie Gundersen's latest video, he shows that the situation has deteriorated dramatically. Now two months after the fact, TEPCO announces findings that pieces of nuclear fuel were found 1.5 miles away from Fukushima. Oh, and that little “explosion” in reactor 3 that TEPCO said was caused by gases, was actually nuclear detonation. Watch the video. Fairewinds has provided accurate and intelligent assessments of the situation from day one. Arnie Gundersen is no paid “expert” and we applaud Arnie and his team for their continuing efforts to keep the public informed of the dangers other are trying to hide.

It is particularly interesting to note, as we reported yesterday, 150 tons of water is being pumped into reactor 1 daily to keep it “cool” (read: one milliliter short of a chain reaction) and just now after weeks and weeks some circus clown from TEPCO claims “there is a leak somewhere.” He must have gone to the same school as the Wall Street executive that said '$3.50/gallon gas is ok for Americans but $4.00 is not ok...' Genius. Pure genius. However, the real kick in the pants is the fact that all this water must be going somewhere – either as steam, contaminating the atmosphere or sinking deep into the ground and contaminating the ground water. It makes sense, given the proximity of Fukushima to the ocean, that there are more than just two leaks pouring perhaps millions of gallons of highly radioactive water into the ocean. Then we read this from Discovery News that shows sharks in California are dying by the dozens from “internal bleeding.” Now what do you know causes internal bleeding? Connect the dots. Internal bleeding is a direct symptom of radiation sickness, and given the fact that sharks can withstand higher levels of radiation than humans, it goes without saying. An interesting article from MyWeatherTech links the two.

So now that you know that the air we breathe and the water we drink is contaminated with radiation, you can understand why underground bunkers are all the rage in Russia - if you can afford the $25k entry fee.

Or perhaps they are more worried about the coming financial apocalypse as this evidence here shows the crumbling of an empire the trickle down wealth effect on States and towns. Or here. Or here. Or here. Did we mention that the EU is insolvent and that Greece will need unlimited amounts of fiat to keep the lights on? Yes we did. Way back in early March.

Finally, hyperinflation is rearing its ugly head inflation is so "tame" that farmers in the US are trading in their tractors for oxen. Move over John Deere - Oxy the Oxen is here. Is this a signal that humans have reached the pinnacle of industrial farming and are now returning to back to their roots? Stay tuned.

Got Me Thinkin' Thursday- Nuclear Meltdown Finally Admitted By TEPCO And Japanese Gov't; Basic Math: One Plus One Equals Two; Strong Yen Hurting Toyota, Threatens To Leave Japan; Holy Yield Curve Batman! Greece Sees 27% Yield On Two Year Bond; Much More

Updates
Update 1: Ben says, time is almost up.


Update 2: Get out of Dodge. Bigger breach than "expected." It's a "serious setback."


Main Article
We've been saying now for almost two months, the situation in Fukushima is far worse than what is officially being reported. Anyone who reads this blog, knew already way back in March from the data being provided like radiation readings and from real experts like Arnie Gundersen that indeed a full meltdown occurred. Simply by examining the byproducts of nuclear fission that were detected in large quantities in and around the doomed plant, one could determine meltdown occurred in an uncontrolled fashion in at least one reactor. It turns out, that two months later almost to the day, TEPCO and by extension the Japanese gov't have admitted to this most disturbing fact. It is disturbing for many factors, besides the obvious fact that either they were so incompetent that they did not know about this back then or that they knew about it but chose to lie about it. We know which one. The devil is in the details of the reports and as we have been saying, "read between the lines." So pay particular attention to phrases such as "we can not deny..." and "it is possible that..." because that says it all.

Now we are going to review basic math. 1+1=2. You see how simple that was? Now let's see if we can connect the dots. We discover reactor 1 has immeasurable amounts of water. In other words, the tank is dry. Next, we learn that TEPCO has been pumping in 150 tons of water per day into the reactor to keep it cool. We can thus conclude there must be a leak somewhere they have yet to discover - sort of like the new leak they recently discovered that was pouring untold thousands of gallons of highly radioactive water into the oceans. So if the water is not in the reactor pressure vessel and it's not in the containment vessel... "Houston, we have a problem." You see, 1+1=2. More on that later, but keep in mind that radioactive particles are cumulative, so two months into this unending catastrophe explains why radiation levels 60 kilometers away from the plant are now higher than Chernobyl. Heck, one day when they throw in the towel, they might just come out with it and say, "Ok! Yes! You want to know the truth! You can't handle the truth because the truth is the situation is so bad that you will all get thyroid and bone cancer." Or something along those lines. Or nothing at all.

Of course, Japan's woes reach further than some relative 60, 100 or 200 kilometer evacuation zone. Today, Toyota is reporting it is running at just 50% capacity in Japan because of the impact of the bullish earthquake and the global depression recovery. To make matters worse, a strong Yen is cutting to their margins bone. Toyota is threatening to leave Japan altogether. No doubt, Toyota's direct loss related to the earthquake of $100 Billion (so far) is going to be spun as bullish for the economy. Time to rally the markets.

Speaking of rallies, Greece is having lots of rallies. And so are the CDS traders who have seen Greek bond yields literally explode like 4th of July fireworks, with the 2yr bond yielding a comical 27%. Can you spell contagion? Don't worry - the earthquake in Spain yesterday was bullish for their economy as well.

Getting back to basic math, let's examine something a bit more complicated. We know 1+1=2 but now let's add a few more variables. The US dollar has recently hit fresh lows in it's valuation and the reasons are obvious. The Fed is the only buyer of US Treasuries. The Fed is the only buyer of stocks. Residential real estate is tanking. Commercial real estate is tanking. Inflation is up exponentially. The cost of living is up exponentially. Yet wages (for the common working person) are flat (Did I mention we still have inflation?). Trade deficits are increasing. Entire States are insolvent. Entire municipalities are insolvent. The education system is being decimated. Municipal bonds are imploding. The US Postal Service is insolvent. Social Security is insolvent. Unemployment is rising, at record. Food stamp usage is at all time record, rising exponentially. US debt is past the point of no return - in other words, it can never be paid back. The only export the US has is inflation, because we make so much of it. Banks are the homes of Banksters. Wall Street is the home of white collar criminals.

Now, your homework is to come up with the answer. So far, that is one calculation I can't seem to wrap my head around.

There's Something Strange, Wednesday- School Children Forced To Wear Protective Gear At School Over Radiation Levels, "Things Are Getting Worse"; Reactor 4 Leaning, TEPCO Considers Supporting SFP; Another Leak In Ocean; More Cargo From Japan Quarantined Due To High Radiation; New Photos From Fukushima Shows Extent Of Damage; US Postal Service Insolvent, Reports Loss Of $2.2B in Q1, Reaches Limit; BoE Sees 7% Inflation; Steve Forbes Predicts US Gold Standard In 5 Years; Greece "Absolute Nightmare" Says Martin Wolf; Much More

Updates
Update 1: "Unusual amounts of smoke billowing from reactors 3 and 4." Don't worry, TEPCO says it's "nothing to worry about"(!)

Main Article
If you knew that your child's school was covered in cancer causing asbestos, would you send your child there, even if they were wearing protective gear? That is what tens of thousands of parents are doing in Japan, as they send their children to schools with radiation levels of 20 mSv/year - that's the maximum limit for a nuclear power plant worker. Over 320 schools are experiencing 20 mSv/year radiation according to official Japanese gov't figures (if you have been connecting the dots since the start of this catastrophe, you know that the real figure is probably 5 times that). Worse still, more than 75% of the schools are receiving radiation levels equivalent to a chest X-Ray every week. And "things are getting worse," according to the vice principal of one school. That is alarming, but due to the nature of the Japanese mentality, most swallow it like good little robots fill in the blank. Remember the 20 kilometer evacuation zone? Those schools are 60 kilometers away from Fukushima. So much for that. Our hearts go out to the people who still live there.

If one needed any more proof just how bad the situation is in Japan, look outside the country and around the world; just ask the people in Rotterdam, Netherlands where 5 cargo containers were quarantined due to high levels of radiation. Sorry, that was "healthy" radiation.

Another day, another leak of highly radioactive water into the ocean. But don't worry: what's healthy for humans is healthy for aquatic life, too. After viewing these new photos of Fukushima, we can't imagine how anything healthy is leaking at all. Further, these structures look so safe, we wonder why TEPCO is considering adding supports to reactor 4 SFP. Connect the dots.

In other radioactive news, the US Postal Service is insolvent, as it reported yet another loss for another quarter. This round, the loss amounted to $2.2 Billion, putting the USPS one step away from their borrowing limit set by Congress. At this point in time, even cutting Saturday service and another 10k jobs won't put them back in black. It's all downhill from here. Definitely, bullish news for the economy.

Speaking of things to be bullish about, Steve Forbes said in a special interview with Human Events, the US will return to a "gold standard" within 5 years. Of course, this means several events will take place including 1) a confiscation of all public gold and silver by the gov't just as it occurred in the days of the Great Depression (as we are in the midst of the Greatest Depression, it makes sense) and of course, 2) gold will reach a price not seen since the Weimar Republic. Connect the dots. Of course, that wouldn't make the Governor of the Bank of England, Mervyn King too happy because a gold standard by the US will no doubt be implemented elsewhere and a gold standard means money couldn't be inflated away. Merv loves inflation. Read it in his own words. 

Finally, we leave you with some words from Financial Times chief economic commentator Martin Wolf, who says Greece's debt crisis is an "absolute nightmare." We have to say Martin, you're a little late to the party. Nearly every savvy investor on this side of the pond knew the PIIGS were insolvent and there was no turning them around. As this article in the Financial Times highlights, the lights are almost out for Greece and Ireland. With more general strikes taking place almost on a daily basis. Portugal is well, obviously next once austerity measures begin. Greece has seen only a small portion of its austerity programs implemented so we can't wait to see how the people react when full implementation occurs. Obviously, someone forgot to tell the ECB that this is bullish for the global economy. What? Another downgrade? We would have never guessed.

There Is No Such Thing As Inflation, Tuesday; Shhhhh! Japan Quietly Reveals Extremely High Radiation Outside Evacuation Zone, Higher Than Chernobyl; Today's Big Yawn: Gold And Silver Roar Back; Much More

Updates
Update 1: Iodine131 Highest level yet at 1,000,000 times above normal, confirms fission took/taking place. At this point in time, would it matter if it was 10 million, 100 million or 10 trillion times above normal?

Update 2: Reactor 4 is leaning- possible collapse imminent. 

Main Article
"There is no inflation," or so sayeth Dr. Deficit. However, as highlighted here and by many other sources numerous times, inflation is here and it's here to stay. The old inflation trick measure the Fed uses to calculate inflation is not only outdated, it's outright wrong. Why? This decades old inflation trick measure, which has been manipulated adjusted a dozen times over the past 50 years to remove any hint of inflation, completely removes the two most important metrics - food and energy. The Fed's reasoning is that food and energy are too volatile and fluctuate up and down too many times to give an accurate reading (strange, when was the last time you noticed food prices were down?). But what happens when food and energy prices continue to rise and have been sustained above a certain level for a certain period of time, as they have been for the past two years? I guess they forgot that the real world revolves around oil. Remember the record drop in oil last week? That giant drop amounted to not even one cent so far at the pump in the real world as this article from ZeroHedge so aptly points out. Yet, the price at the pump rises almost instantaneously when oil rises.

Since you already know the only export the US has is inflation, you don't have to think deep as to why Egypt's annual inflation rate has exploded to 12.1% in April. In fact, the same factors which caused Mubarak to get the boot are still there and getting worse. For example, food prices have climbed 20.7% YoY. Thus, reality dictates it doesn't matter who is in charge - inflation is there. As the Indian Reuters article points out, it's the weakness of the dollar which is creating global instability. Guess what creates dollar weakness? Guess Hu who knows that? Guess Hu who is buying gold and silver? Connect the dots. It goes without saying, last week's gold/silver sell off was a nice time for those shorts to cover as gold/silver have been roaring back, just as expected. This article says there is plenty of room to the upside. Seems logical. Then look at this guy's face. Makes us want to vomit.

In other news, Greek bonds rose slightly on news that they'll be getting more handout bailout money, to the tune of $115 to $140 Billion.  Reminds me of the old adage of giving a man a fish versus teaching him how to fish. Expect Greece to get more money every month from now until the whole financial system collapses or Finland says NO! The comedy show must go on. Until it doesn't.

Finally, as the media blackout of information about Fukushima continues (due to the severity of the situation and so as "not to create panic" or "lower public morale" if the truth was released), we get drips and drabs of radioactive info today from The Asahi Shimbun. Notice how very quietly, Japan releases information about the severity of the situation. The article highlights the fact (we already knew, but who cares) that radiation levels outside the evacuation zone are extremely high, higher even than around the evacuation around Chernobyl! Let me repeat that - radiation levels outside the evacuation zone are extremely high, higher even than around the evacuation around Chernobyl! But let's keep this a secret. We don't want mothers to worry about their children going to school in radioactive dirt. That might cause panic and that can't happen. It's all about the Benjamins.What would happen if a major earthquake struck Europe? It will be spun as bullish for the global economy and everyone will get another healthy dose of radiation.

Like Clockwork May 8th 2011 Was Fukushima May Day; Gundersen Confirms #3 Explosion Was SFP, Groundwater Contamination Worst In History; Surprise, Surprise! Radiation Levels In Reactor 1 At 700mSv Per Hour;Surprise, Surprise: Housing Crash Getting Worse; Portuguese Banks Borrow Record Amount In April, Bailout In Question; Big Yawn Of The Day: Greece Downgraded Again; Soini: "Europe Is Insolvent"; Much More

On Friday, we reported that an email sent from an official in Japan as reported by Energy News, stated May 8th would be the day when a "massive release of dense radiation would be released into the atmosphere." Thus, we called May 8th, "May Day" and just like clockwork, May 8th, 2011, during the early hours of the day, what appears to be a raging fire broke out at reactor 3. If this is steam, then indeed temperatures have risen significantly and "dense radiation" is being released. If this is smoke, then the worst case scenario has occurred. Both would explain the total media blackout as "they must lie to keep panic from spreading." (I suggest you bookmark that HP page and send it to your friends and loved ones)

Perhaps the most telling part of this whole catastrophe is not what they are saying but rather what they are not saying. It's happening right before our very eyes. Why is Japan not allowing a research vessel to conduct independent tests of the water off the coast of Japan? You can figure that out yourself. 

Since, as we reported by an article in the Sydney Morning Herald on Friday that said you can't trust paid "experts," there are few sources remaining that openly report the truth about this situation. One of the most trusted sources, and one that we have quoted from on a weekly if not sometimes daily basis, is Fairewinds Associates. Again, they never disappoint. This must watch video from Arine Gundersen explains a lot. Here are some key points:

-Groundwater contamination is the worst in nuclear history
-There are still many leaks around the plant
-Not only has the US EPA discontinued radiation monitoring of air and fish, Japan is preventing independent tests on it's territory
-The whole situation is much worse than the officials are reporting
-The number 3 reactor explosion was from the spent fuel pool, worst has occurred

Even more telling than the whole media blackout is perhaps the fact that only a Chinese news agency is reporting that radiation levels inside reactor number 1, as we also reported on Friday, are at 700 mSv per hour. That level means only a few minutes of exposure would lead to death. You won't see that anywhere else. But Hu who cares? As long as that radiation doesn't directly impact me, right? So you think. Was is reassessed? 

In other radioactive news, the US housing crisis is getting worse, much worse and there is no end in sight. Sigh. So much for the "trickle down wealth effect." The only thing turning the printing presses up to 11 did was create inflation in the things we need and deflation in the things we want to sell. In short, it made the rich, far, far richer than before and the poor... well you know. Just ask Portugal, which has the second highest unemployment in the EU and had to borrow a record amount for its banks during April. How about that 23% increases in borrowing to keep the lights on? Stay ahead of the game and keep the physical gold and silver in your physical pocket.

Remember what the Portuguese officials told you, for months - "we don't need a bailout." Of course, a few hours later, a preplanned bailout was rolled out. So what to do but deny? How about throw down a bogus inquiry into ratings agencies? That deserves a true laugh out loud. The circus never ends. Except of course, if Finland has its way. 

Finland has the power to end the whole bailout free-for-all this week. We shall see. Right now, they are sticking to the guns.

In other radioactive news, the European Union is insolvent. But you already knew that, unless you were "one of the idiots" who didn't know that. Timo Soini, the Finnish Chair said, "This official version is a lie, one that takes the ordinary people of Europe for idiots. They deserve better from politics and their leaders." Harsh words from Finland. Perhaps tough love is needed. 

Finally, since the whole EU is insolvent, that makes Greece the poster child for the EU and the S&P congratulates them with another downgrade in a long line of downgrades. Act surprised. There are of course, many more downgrades to come. Why not just downgrade the whole European (Dis)Union to junk already? Because they've got to keep circus running, no matter how many people buy into it. Another excellent article from ZeroHedge, expands on an article we quoted from Friday which shows when the situation is really bad, they have no other choice but to lie, lie and lie some more. Remember those rumors of a secret meeting about Greece leaving the EU? They lied about it. So much for their credibility. What's that old adage about a liar and a thief? Oh, right- they're one in the same. Guess where all that "bailout money" is going? Connect the dots.

Fukushima Friday Redux: May 8th May Be Set For Big Radiation Release; New Photos From Inside Reactor 1; New Video From Robot, Detects Radiation Levels Far Higher Than Expected; Portugal's Bailout In Question Over Lack Of Finnish Support, Key Change Complicates Matters; Portuguese Civil Servants Strike After Deal, Greece Riots, Wants Out Of EU; 8 in 10 Americans Believe Economy Is Poor; Animal Farm Payrolls;Much More

Editors Note: Due to popular demand, the update section will be moved back to its original location at the top. During the past few days, there have been some technical issues with the blogging software which has removed and scrambled content. Due to these issues, articles have been delayed and were rewritten. Sorry for the delay.

Updates 

Update 2: An article from The Sydney Morning Herald is a must read. "Cumulative dose of 19mSv, showed a cancer risk consistent with that of the A-bomb survivors."  

Update 1: Lloyd Blankfein says he won't resign. Now why would he do that? More time with the family?

Main Article 
Just because news about Fukushima is being buried (read: ignored) by the MSM, doesn't mean nothing is occurring. In fact, on the contrary. As reported here yesterday, PM Kan had some very interesting things to say about that other nuclear plant called Onagawa which gets no love these days. One has to wonder what is really going on there as well. Perhaps if the public knew that Onagawa was also a problem, they'd have more work to do keeping the clam. Which is particularly interesting because Energy News is reporting that a Japanese official stated that within 2 days from now, on the 8th of May, a high density release of radiation will occur if the situation continues. How the high density (read: high level) radiation will be released and what exactly the current situation that causes this release is not clear. That being said, what is clear according to the same source, is this information was not to be made public like the "mistake of the release of radiated water." 

If you want to be surprised by something you didn't already know, watch this new video from inside reactor 1. And here is the surprise: radiation levels detected inside are... wait for it... wait for it... higher than expected. You can act surprised if you want. Well, what did you expect- lower radiation readings?

Also of interest, new photos from Fukushima of various thingamabobs. I thought you might have wanted to take a look. Now that Fukushima news is out of the way, we return you to your regularly scheduled programming.

As you may know, Portugal was verbally awarded by the EU a sizable handout bailout by its big brothers on Monday. However, as we noted, Finland holds key to whether or not they actually get the money and as of now, it's not looking too good for them. In fact, a key shift in power has lead some to believe that Portugal may not get a bailout out. At the very least, this power shift will cause a long delay in the bailout monies being delivered. The vote, to take place on the 16th, must be unanimous.

One of the requirements Finland is seeking from Portugal is the dreaded "A" word - austerity. Thus, about 250,000 civil servants went on strike today to join Greece and Ireland in general strikes that are having a major impact on the system. Just in time to celebrate the May 6th flash crash, strikes are taking place in Greece, a country that doesn't need any more problems for its economy. No wonder, most Greeks want to get out of the EU. Either that or Germany will just kick them out. N you see how easy it was to predict a disintegration of the EU? We wonder if George Papaconstantinou will consider the riots as bullish for his economy.

Of course, the problems related to the global economic depression recession are not confined to the EU. Today, CNN is reporting that a recent survey shows 8 in 10 Americans think the "economy" is in poor condition. Only 1% think it's in very good condition. Now who might think that? Could it be the top 1% who will see record pay that exceeds pre-recession levels? You see, it's good to be wrong most of the time with other people's money and get paid big bucks for doing so.

Of course, the "markets" are "rallying" today on the Non-Farm Animals Payroll, uh, numbers. Headlines everywhere are in extra bold face today, with every main stream media article running "Big Job Growth, Economy Adds 244k Jobs." The sheep might be fooled but savvy thinkers know otherwise. Here's what they know:

-They know that 175k of the 244k jobs were created out of thin air by the magic wand of estimation measures.

-They know that if the official U3 unemployment number that was released with this "release" is up to 9% and the official U6 unemployment is up to 15.9%, then the real unemployment rate which includes those who want a job, those who have fallen off the unemployment payrolls and are no longer counted as unemployed, is more than 23%. 

-They know that the labor force participation rate is at the lowest rate in 25 years.

-They know the number of people not in the labor force AND the number of people that want a job are both a all time records.

-They know that full time jobs are a thing of the past in this country and nearly all new jobs are part time (read: minimum wage Burger King, WalMart et al jobs) which means, don't expect a housing recovery from those people. Take for example McDonalds hiring 62k people of that big number!

-They know that NFP and all the data sets from the BLS are nothing but BLS minus the L. (A special thanks to ZeroHedge for getting that information out there. As I said many times, who else besides ZH would really report that data?)

Finally, although paper silver and gold has been taken out to the woodshed in the past couple of days, demand for the physical stuff remains very high. So much so that there is not enough to fill all of the orders. In fact, China and Mexico are reportedly buying up all they can. It's beyond amazing that the good Doctor can't even allow more than one day of down markets. 

Theatrics Thursday: Bailouts Galore; Bailouts Don't Work; Fukushima- Workers Sent Into Reactor 1; Onagawa Fishy; Japan Kept Secret Radiation Readings To Prevent Panic; Japan Raises Radiation Limits For Children 3300%;UN: Food Prices Soar; Initial Claims A Joke; Much More, Update

Updates

Update 1: White smoke seen from reactor 2 and 3. Of course, this is just healthy smoke. 

Main Article

"All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely players." - William Shakespeare

The daily news, as it progresses from strange to bizarre to downright chaotic, has got nothing on George Lucas. The news has become so surreal, so stupendous, that indeed as the expression nowadays goes, "you can't make this stuff up." Take for example the circus show called the European (Dis)Union. Everyone, with the now infamous half a radioactive brain knew months in advance that Portugal was the next in line to receive a handout, courtesy of their wealthier brothers. As I highlighted here numerous times, the CDS spreads and bond yields are a tell tale sign of things to come (read: forecast for default). But don't tell that to the professional liars experts. Consider these few examples.


"Greece does not need financial aid." - Angela Merkel, March 10th 2010

"Greece will come through crisis without bailout." - IMF head Dominique Strauss-Kahn, March 8th 2010. 

"Portugal does not need an international bailout." - Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates, December 10th 2010 

"Portugal does not need [financial] help and the markets know this." - PM Jose Socrates, January 12th 2011

"Ireland does not need emergency bailout." -  EU economics and monetary affairs commissioner Olli Rehn, September 29th 2010 

"Ireland does not need a bailout." - Finance Minister Brian Lenihan, November 15th 2010.

Guess who got bailouts? Which begs the question, is "we don't need a bailout" some sort of secret code or do they think that market participants are really that dumb?

Of course, this bailout won't be any easier to swallow than the last two that didn't work. Expect social unrest to explode in 3... 2... Well, at least one person knows that bailouts don't work. Timo Soini, head of Finland’s euro-skeptic True Finns party said today that bailouts “don’t work” and “it’s a question of time before a default will happen” in Greece. The circus clowns at the ECB however, think an alcoholic needs another whiskey bottle to cure his problems. Unfortunately, so does the alcoholic, as he publicly denies he has a problem.

One can deduce from the yield trending and economic data from around the world that Spain is next in line to receive a bailout. Back in March, we gave Spain a few months before we hear the "we don't need a bailout" punchline followed by the subsequent and totally unexpected bailout. Act surprised. You do the, uhh, math.

Speaking of unexpected, jobless claims today were downright horrific, but we're not surprised. Only the expert analysts at Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Citi et al were surprised when jobless claims exploded, uhh, unexpectedly. The miss by these experts was so bad in fact, it was the second worst miss in history. That's why they get paid the big bucks. We wonder if they actually based their numbers on Fukushima radiation data this strong economic global recovery here, here, here and here or they simply pull numbers out of a hat. Either way, they deserve a bigger record bonus this year than last year. "Paging Dr. Deficit. Dr. Deficit, can you please come down to the PR (Printing Room) for emergency ink refill. You're needed immediately in the PR." 

See how you can't make this up? Fact is stranger than fiction, and Barnum and Bailey's Ringling Bros have plenty of talent to pick from. 

Would you like some healthy radioactive news? Let's start with the blatant lies, like higher radiation is ok for school children. Of course, this wouldn't have anything to do with the hundreds of schoolyards nearby Fukushima with high levels of radiation? Or anything to do with the facts that if these schools were condemned due to high radiation levels, they wouldn't have any room to put those children, would it? Nah. Why would the gov't lie to us? Which makes you wonder what the heck does this mean? Oh yeah, you forgot about Onagawa...

Whoops! Pay no attention to the dangerous radiation readings man behind the curtain. Everything is just fine.