The Federal Reserve continues down the asset reduction path, but how long can it last? With various thoughts about the stock market, interest rates, recession, inflation, and possibly employment, the Fed has found itself in a race of few horses, where none can emerge as winner since there is no finish line.

In 1993 the New England Journal of Medicine came out with a very well-research report called Actual Causes of Death in the United States (repeated in 2004) which stated that 70% of our diseases are lifestyle related, and that eight of the nine leading causes of death in America are lifestyle related. 

On Saturday, protests supporting Julian Assange will occur around the world. In London, Assange supporters will link arms around the parliament building. Protests will also occur outside the Justice Department headquarters in Washington (I’ll be one of the speakers), D.C., and in San Francisco, Tulsa, Denver, and Seattle, as well as in Australia.

For many commentators, a change in the shape of the differential between the long-term interest rate and the short-term interest rate—i.e., the yield spread provides an indication of the likely direction of the economy in the months ahead. Thus, an increase in the yield spread raises the likelihood of a possible strengthening in economic activity in the months to come. Conversely, a decline in the yield spread is seen as indicative of a possible economic downturn ahead.