Archive for May, 2010

I Took a Payday Loan, Spent the Money and I’m Not Even Sorry

May 30th, 2010

Sometimes it feels so good to let go for a change
It all started when my wireless system at home stopped working. My desktop computer worked fine but the laptop was dead. I called in my technician and he slaved away for ten minutes and then said, “Everything’s fine, it’s fixed. I brought it back to life. Why don’t you get yourself a decent screen if you’re doing so much work? Much easier on the eyes, you know. Just buy it, bring it home, plug it in and pray.” I laughed at his little joke. I paid him, he left and the little seed he had planted began to grow until I couldn’t stand it.

I take a Payday Loan
I shopped around on the internet and compared prices. Then I checked the amount of a loan from direct online lender payday loans to see if I really could afford one of those nice slim, wide screens in place of the huge box I have on my desk. It all fitted together nicely and I raced off to the computer store.

Things have changed
There are computer stores everywhere. I found one in the parking basement of a small strip mall and despite the ongoing galloping recession the place was packed with people, mostly teenagers. I stood in line and was finally directed to the Screens and Peripherals department. Another line and finally I was in front of the screen man. I came home with my package humming a Pay and Pray mantra.

The weather factor
It’s summer, every day more glorious than the previous. The days are not yet fiery hot and the humidity hasn’t started but after half an hour scrunched down behind the computer screen I was wet and frantic. What’s the prayer for a brand new computer screen that doesn’t switch on, I yelled to nobody? Dead, a brand new, just-unpacked, computer screen. I called my technician but there was no answer. Just then the screen switched on. I collapsed into the chair and breathed a short prayer of thanks.

The *?!#?!* Mouse!
No mouse! Everything works but there is no mouse. Why didn’t I ask the technician to do all this? I could have screamed with frustration. I hate these 2 minute jobs that turn into 2 hour struggles that leave one limp. I went to the kitchen and made myself coffee. Back in the study the mouse came to life on its own and when I walked in the computer and screen and mouse were all waiting anxiously for me to sit down and start working.

Just testing
These things are done to test us, to test our patience to sit things out, to see if we are up to scratch in the game of life.

Everything works.
This little tale has a happy ending. Everything works. Now I need a little extra work to pay back my Payday Loan!

Payday Loans | Cash Advance | Payday Advance | Cash Advance Loans

Posted in Finance, Loans, Payday Loans | 1 Comment »

Forget about money, we’re switching to gold

May 29th, 2010

A gold-dispensing ATM is coming to a city near you
The world’s finances are in muddle; up is down and down is up and everyone is confused and fear is growing. We read about Greece and we panicked, then it was Portugal but that seemed to go away and yesterday they started on Spain. What’s going on? I’m selling all my stocks and buying gold. At least that’s safe. Does all this sound familiar? At the signs of financial instability the world turns to good old gold.

The gold price
And as economic fears drive gold prices to new highs, the creator of a gold-dispensing ATM is attracting attention around the globe. Earlier this month, gold prices hit an all time high of nearly $1,250 per ounce, and the precious metal has continued to climb as euro zone countries struggle with debt and investors worry that the region’s problems could spread globally.

The Gold dispenser
Germany-based GOLD to go, which is currently churning out 50 gold machines a month to meet a recent jump in demand, launched its first ATM in Abu Dhabi’s Emirates Palace Hotel earlier this month and opened its second in Germany last week. By making gold investing as easy as buying a candy bar from a vending machine, GOLD to go hopes to attract average buyers to the gold market. The golden ATM’s next destinations are the Bergamo Airport in Milan, Italy, all major airports in Malaysia, one of Russia’s biggest banks and an undetermined location in Turkey.

Anyone can buy gold
“We are going to make gold public with these machines,” said Thomas Geissler, CEO of Ex Oriente Lux AG, which owns GOLD to go. “The prices are so easy to control that we’re going to de-mystify gold and make it easier for anyone to buy it.” GOLD to go’s ATM looks like a vending machine and dispenses gold coins and bars weighing up to one ounce at prices updated every 10 minutes based on the real-time spot price of gold.

Euro under pressure
“When you see exchange rates going up and down every day with the euro under so much pressure and stocks decreasing, this gold machine seemed like a very sound idea,” he said. “In times like these you must think of somewhere else to put your money, and physical gold still has great appeal for everyone.”

What you can buy
ATM-owners can choose from a variety of other gold items, such as gold Canadian maple leaf coins, South African Krugerrands, and even some custom designs. For example, the special edition gold medallion it engraved with the Palace Hotel’s logo was created for the United Arab Emirate debut.

Gold is safe
“The ATM is just a reflection of the demand from consumers and investors for exposure to gold,” he said. “As long as prices continue to trend upward and investors remain concerned over economic and political conditions, I think we’ll keep seeing strong demand for safe-haven assets like gold.”

Posted in Economy, Finance | No Comments »

Is Europe headed for a shoot-out?

May 27th, 2010

Make sure you don’t get hit by a stray bullet
It’s called a Mexican standoff. The two heroes face each other, guns drawn. Neither wants to shoot first and wants even less to shoot second, but neither will put down his firearm. We’ve all seen these scenes in movies like “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly,” and in Quentin Tarantino’s crime gore-fest “Reservoir Dogs,” among other films.

Escalation
Mexican standoffs are an escalation, and a highly unstable one at that, of a “balance of terror”. In fact, neither side of that delicate equation needs to wave its gun about: It’s enough for the other side to know that the weapon exists and could be drawn. The transition from “balance of terror” to “Mexican standoff” is not only a serious escalation; there is often no way back. A balance of terror can continue undisturbed for a long time. It can be perfectly stable, as we saw during the Cold War. But Mexican standoffs must be resolved quickly, before one of the party’s nerves gets the better of him. Once that happens, the road to face-to-face confrontation is short indeed. Now we are talking about Mexican standoffs in international relations. Think “Cuban Missile Crisis”.

Today’s economic Mexican standoffs>
They come with a twist: One of the adversaries standing there panting, gun in hand, is a suicide bomber, who is threatening his rival not with a pistol but with economic destruction.

Greek dominoes
That’s what happened six months ago in the American financial sector. Its leaders obliquely, but clearly, delivered a message to Washington: Save us or we’ll blow ourselves up and take you down with us. Now the very same thing is happening between Greece and Germany’s taxpayers. The latter have, to their chagrin, been forced to bow before the threats of their Mediterranean partner in the EU to blow itself up financially, taking down the entire euro bloc as it goes.

How can this happen?
Many ask how it could happen that a bit player like Greece has its finger on the button that threatens the economic health of an entire continent. The answer is as suicidal states go, Greece may be small, but it isn’t the only one. The problem is that if Greece explodes, it could cause a domino effect. If not for that you can be sure that the euro bloc members would simply leave Greece moaning by the wayside.

Germany is wild
In all the discussions on the state of the Greek nation, there’s one detail that almost nobody mentions, but it’s an important detail. The German public is furious at having to rescue its partners, and with reason. Why should their thrift, industriousness and responsibility finance the good life of the Greeks? But there are two sides to every coin, including the battered euro. There’s no denying that Greece and its people lived beyond their means and accrued debt that they can’t repay without help. Other states, such as Ireland, Portugal and Spain, are in the same boat, albeit to a lesser degree.

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