The European Bailout Explained with a Cartoon

This explains well how the Eurozone solved their debt crisis. Also, my latest article: Did Jim Cramer Really Say Buy Netflix At $50 And Sell In High $100s?

October Update

Links and Articles for October

New from 2011 Charts

• October 11 CalPERS Asset Allocation Ratio and Target Annual ReturnJoseph Dear, CEO of CalPERS and Assistant Secretary of Labor at OSHA under Bill Clinton, showed this table today on CNBC. As of April 2011, this is the asset allocation for CALPERS
  
  
• October 5  Investors Intelligence Bulls over Bulls plus Bears Sentiment IndicatorThis is a graph of the weekly Investors Intelligence Survey Bulls minus Bears Sentiment data from 1988 to today plotted against the weekly DOW (Dow Jones Industrial Average)
  
• October 5 Gold / GLD Price Support Charts
• • This graph shows the price of gold (more gold charts and current quote) from January 1, 2000 through October 5, 2011.  The dashed green lines show major support levels
  • The second chart below shows Gold recently bounced off its 200 day moving average and is now hugging the dashed green line

New from 2011 Articles:

•  Oct 17 Government Debt as a Percentage of GDP by Country
•  Aug 8: List of Standard & Poors AAA Rated Companies

MORE

Gold/GLD: Resistance and support levels for the price of gold

CNBC Bonus Bucks Daily Trivia Contest Answers 

Black Friday 2011 

Long Term Results that Speak for Themselves
Since 9/30/98 inception, "Kirk's Newsletter Explore Portfolio" is UP 338%
vs. the S&P500 UP only 38% vs. NASDAQ UP only 43% (All through 9/30/11) 
 
Subscribe to my service NOW and get the October 2011 Issue for FREE! !   

In 2010, "Kirk's Newsletter Explore Portfolio" gained 20.4% vs. the DJIA up 11.0%
In 2009, "Kirk's Newsletter Explore Portfolio" gained 33.5% vs. the DJIA up 18.8%
(More info)

Social Security COLA for 2012

Today the Social Security Administration announced the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for 2012. Here are the details from the Press Release:

Social Security Announces 3.6 Percent Benefit Increase for 2012

Cost-of-Living Adjustment is First Since 2009

Monthly Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits for more than 60 million Americans will increase 3.6 percent in 2012, the Social Security Administration announced today.

The 3.6 percent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will begin with benefits that nearly 55 million Social Security beneficiaries receive in January 2012.  Increased payments to more than 8 million SSI beneficiaries will begin on December 30, 2011.

Some other changes that take effect in January of each year are based on the increase in average wages.  Based on that increase, the maximum amount of earnings subject to the Social Security tax (taxable maximum) will increase to $110,100 from $106,800.  Of the estimated 161 million workers who will pay Social Security taxes in 2012, about 10 million will pay higher taxes as a result of the increase in the taxable maximum. 

Information about Medicare changes for 2012, when announced, will be available at www.Medicare.gov.  For some beneficiaries, their Social Security increase may be partially or completely offset by increases in Medicare premiums. 


The Social Security Act provides for how the COLA is calculated. To read more, please visit www.socialsecurity.gov/cola.

Table of Social Security COLAs by Year