We were there.  On the edge of cracking the 88 level on the SPY Monday morning, when we had a strong rally to begin the week.  Then Intel reported to put some fire into this move.  We closed the week slightly below 94.50, which puts us within striking distance of our 6 month highs at 95.50.  We’ll see how that plays out this upcoming week.

CIT gets bailed out.  I must agree with the author of the article, CIT getting bailed out by its creditors can only help the US economy.  They provide cash flow to companies that can’t wait long periods of time to receive payment.  If CIT goes under, you could have thousands of other businesses going under, which would hamper our economic recovery significantly.

Goldman goes mainstream.  I never really watched the Daily Show until a few months ago when Jon Stewart began calling out CNBC and Jim Cramer on their horrific calls.  I respect that he’s actually calling them out and I feel like he’s paving the way for others to stand up as well.

Reasons to abolish the Fed.  Some very good points are made here.  Congressman Ron Paul has been trying to rein in the Fed for years now.  He’s finally beginning to get some support, although at the moment, not enough.  The fact of the matter is that all regulators were asleep at the wheel.  There is NO reason to give them more power when they have proven to be incompetant with less.

SMB highlighted on Zerohedge this week.  Looks like we are now on Tyler’s daily reading list.

Why housing hasn’t bottomed yet.  Many people are saying that the economy won’t start to recover until housing does.  Starts and permits have been a little erratic as of late, as people are trying to pick bottoms in the housing market.  In much less liquid markets, you have to be patient and let the prices come to you.  An interesting read.