Tesla builds cars by hand, Gigafactory produces ONE BATTERY PER DAY

A new securities class action lawsuit filed in late March 2018, which names Elon Musk as a defendant, alleges that the Tesla CEO knew that the Model 3 was not going to be able to be produced as the rates he claimed - and that the company was not going to be able to meet production goals due to - get this - the production lines not even being assembled. The lawsuit alleges that this didn’t prevent Elon Musk from going out and telling the investing public otherwise, hence the allegation of securities fraud.
First, the allegation that Musk was told by his own employees that the Model 3 couldn't be mass produced by the end of 2017, which was the company's stated goal:

Then, after claiming in May 2017 that the company was "on track" to meet its mass production goal, it's alleged the company hadn't even finished building its production lines, clearly meaning it wasn't "on track". The lawsuit alleges that Musk knew the line was "way behind":

The suit alleges that the company was building Model 3's by hand at a "pilot shop" at the same time Tesla claimed to be on track for "mass production"; it also claims that it was "evident to anyone who visited the facility" - including Elon Musk - that the line wasn't built and that "construction workers were spending most of their shifts sitting around with nothing to do":

We also read in the lawsuit that Tesla’s Gigafactory, at the time in question, was allegedly capable of producing only one battery pack per day - and that the production of one battery pack took “two shifts” to complete.

The suit alleges that the company's former CFO, Jason Wheeler - who is one of more than 50 key executives and VPs to have left the company over the last half decade or so - told Elon Musk personally that they wouldn't be able to mass produce by the end of 2017. The entire lawsuit is available at this link and some of the most interesting content was first shared by critics of the company on Twitter.
The drumbeat of accountability for Elon Musk continues to pound louder and louder as each day progresses, with some analysts calling for the SEC to investigate him if the company doesn't meet its stated cash flow positive and "no capital raise" guidance for the back end of 2018.

A Tool of the NWO, Agenda 21 change agent

Yesterday we detailed how the company is cutting corners with production and suppliers, as well as with its certified preowned vehicle program. Commentators continue to suggest that Elon musk should be held accountable by regulators if the company again raises capital this year or is not free cash flow positive by the second half of this year, two claims that Musk made this week in an angry outburst where he attacked the messenger (The Economist) for pointing out a Jefferies analysis.

The Economist used to be boring, but smart with a wicked dry wit. Now it’s just boring (sigh). Tesla will be profitable & cash flow+ in Q3 & Q4, so obv no need to raise money.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 13, 2018

Then, on Friday afternoon, CNBC released an scathing report detailing that a large portion of parts supplied to Tesla to manufacture vehicles with has been substandard or defective. The article alleged that:

Tesla is struggling to manage and fix a significant volume of flawed or damaged parts from its suppliers, sending some to local machine shops for rework, according to several current and former Tesla engineers. The company said it also makes adjustments to the design of some parts after receiving them from suppliers.

It continues:

All automakers have to deal with some amount of defective or damaged parts, both from their own factories and from suppliers. But, as previously reported, current and former employees say that Tesla experiences a higher rate of defects than industry norms. A significant number of flawed parts, and parts in need of design changes, also come from Tesla's suppliers, they said.

The reason for the large number of defective parts? Spending less time to vet suppliers, according to company employees.

Current and former employees from the company's Fremont, Calif. and Sparks, Nevada factories blame Tesla for spending less time to vet suppliers than is typical in auto manufacturing. These people said the company failed to comprehensively test "variance specs" with some vendors before embarking on Model 3 production.

Ultimately, it's Tesla lack of experience and scramble to get a car to market that was leading to the pile up in defects, which will end up crushing the company's "quality control" reputation, as the following episode suggests:

Auto manufacturing expert Steve Finch, a former GM plant manager with about 40 years of industry experience, said automakers typically deal with some flawed parts from suppliers. Finch said that mass-market car companies normally will take a year or more to vet a prospective supplier. This is to ensure the supplier's factory follows ISO quality management standards and other processes that are on par with the automaker's own.
Former and current employees said Tesla took less time before signing on new suppliers. Tesla employees tasked with vetting suppliers were also not always experienced with ISO quality management standards, said these people.

We also pointed out yesterday that Tesla is starting to give other indications that it is stretched very thin - and that this leads to cutting certified pre-owned vehicle corners. Yesterday, Electrek wrote an article detailing ugly new changes to the company's certified preowned checklist procedures, including the company no longer taking care of cosmetic details, which the article refers to as "refurbishing":

Now the company has updated its policy and some new cars coming on Tesla’s list of used vehicles have this ‘Not Refurbished’ warning that reads:
“This car has passed a 70-point mechanical inspection and will be cleaned before delivery. If you would like any additional work that is not covered under your warranty, we can help arrange service after delivery for an added cost.”
Tesla salespeople have been telling buyers that the automaker is still making sure that the vehicles are up to their standards for the warranty, but they are not fixing cosmetic issues anymore.

Worst of all, these changes come a time where the company is about to receive a massive inflow of vehicle inventory from three-year leases that started in 2015:

Tesla has changed its ‘certified pre-owned’ (used) vehicle policy this week to stop “refurbishing” its used cars just ahead of them receiving a big influx of vehicles as more 3-year leases are ending. The automaker had launched the program 3 years ago and it has been tuning it over the last two years.

Previously, certified preowned Tesla vehicles not only underwent a inspection to check the mechanics and operation of the vehicle, but they also underwent a cosmetic clean up. The cosmetic cleanup always seemed like an absolute necessity, especially given the fact that Tesla buyers are actually unable to view pictures of the certified preowned vehicles that they’re purchasing:

The cars with this new warning still don’t have real pictures of the actual vehicle, but instead only renderings of the vehicle’s configuration.
Tesla told Electrek that they are soon going to make it easier to request real pictures of listed vehicles.
The change comes as Tesla is getting more and more used vehicles, especially after 3-year leases from 2015 when Tesla started ramping up production significantly and also making strides with its leasing program.

On top of that, the company is still selling these vehicles at premium prices, which the Elektrek article hilariously calls "value retention":

With the increased inventory and the lack of “refurbishing”, a decrease in price would be expected, but Tesla used vehicles have historically been very good at value retention.

Regardless, the air - and questions - of accountability continues to get thicker around Elon Musk and his band of merry brothers.
If the stock takes another dive next week, what is Mr. Musk going to come up with in order to keep a sense of being such trivial concerns as cash flow and profitability - and more importantly, how long will his lawyers let him keep talking?

Elon was found passed out against a Tesla Model 3, surrounded by "Teslaquilla" bottles, the tracks of dried tears still visible on his cheeks.

This is not a forward-looking statement, because, obviously, what's the point?

Happy New Month! pic.twitter.com/YcouvFz6Y1

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 1, 2018

https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-04-14/elon-knew-new-lawsuit-alleges-musk-knowingly-lied-about-model-3-production-0

Sky News cut off the former commander of British Armed Forces Jonathan S...

Lesbian couple with 5 mulatto children commit suicide killing all

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A woman was not drunk when she drove her large family off a Northern California cliff last month and her wife and several children had large amounts of a drug in their systems that can cause drowsiness, authorities said Friday. she only had ONE BEER.

Police had previously said they believed the Hart family died in a suicide plunge from a scenic overlook. The crash happened just days after authorities in Washington state opened an investigation following allegations the children were being neglected.

Preliminary toxicology tests found Jennifer Hart had an alcohol level of 0.102, said California Patrol Capt. Bruce Carpenter. California drivers are considered drunk with a level of 0.08 or higher.

Toxicology tests also found that her wife Sarah Hart and two of their children had "a significant amount" of an ingredient commonly found in the allergy drug Benadryl, which can make people sleepy. Toxicology results for a third child killed are still pending, Carpenter said.

Carpenter said none of the car's occupants were wearing seat-belts.

Sarah and Jennifer Hart and their six adopted children were believed to be in the family's SUV when it plunged off a cliff in Mendocino County, more than 160 miles (250 kilometers) north of San Francisco.

Authorities have said data from the vehicle's software suggested the crash was deliberate, though the California Highway Patrol has not concluded why the vehicle went off an ocean overlook on a rugged part of coastline. A specialized team of accident investigators is trying to figure that out with help from the FBI, Carpenter said.

"We believe that the Hart incident was in fact intentional," he said.

Carpenter said the family stopped in the small town of Naselle, Washington, near their Woodland, Washington, home, during their drive to the California cliff but that investigators are still trying to determine why they stopped there and whether they contacted anyone.

Five bodies were found March 26 near the small city of Mendocino, a few days after Washington state authorities began investigating the Harts for possible child neglect, but three of their children were not immediately recovered from the scene.

Two more are missing and another body has been found but not identified.

The 100-foot (31-meter) drop killed the women, both 39, and their children Markis Hart, 19; Jeremiah Hart, 14; and Abigail Hart, 14. Hannah Hart, 16; Devonte Hart, 15; and Sierra Hart, 12, have not been found.

Devonte drew national attention after he was photographed in tears while hugging a white police officer during a 2014 protest.

A neighbor of the Harts in Woodland, Washington, had filed a complaint, saying the children were apparently being deprived of food as punishment.

Long before the crash, Sarah Hart pleaded guilty in 2011 to a domestic assault charge in Minnesota over what she said was a spanking given to one of her children.

And authorities have said social services officials in Oregon contacted the West Linn Police Department about the family in 2013 while they were living in the area.

A family of lesbians, all die - suicide pact, note under car mat.

Baarts also cited the lack of skid marks near the cliff’s edge — indicating that the vehicle did not attempt to brake.

View photos

Ah...now for the truth. Tesla didn't quit, THEY WERE FIRED.

Federal Investigators Remove Tesla as Party to Model X Autopilot Crash Inquiry

Consumer Reports has no financial relationship with advertisers on this site.
Consumer Reports has no financial relationship with advertisers on this site.
The National Transportation Safety Board took the unusual step Thursday of revoking Tesla’s status as a “party” to its investigation into a fatal collision that killed the driver of a Model X while the SUV’s Autopilot feature was engaged.
The NTSB—which investigates all significant U.S. transportation accidents and incidents—says the automaker broke its agreement to refrain from publicly releasing information about the crash, according to a statement from NTSB Chairman Robert Sumwalt on Thursday.
The Model X crashed into a concrete barrier March 23 on a road in Mountainview, Calif. The driver, a father of two, died.
The NTSB’s action means Tesla no longer has access to information and findings before they become official at the end of the NTSB investigation, which could take a year or longer to complete. The sharing process is in place so that companies can respond and make safety changes quickly for the benefit of the public.
At the same time, the NTSB says releasing incomplete information in the middle of an investigation can “often lead to speculation and incorrect assumptions about the probable cause of a crash, which does a disservice to the investigative process and the traveling public.”
The NTSB’s involvement is a signal of the stakes involved—the safety board, often associated with aviation accident investigations, looks into only a handful of the millions of U.S. highway accidents each year.

Advocates Call for Name Change

Tesla’s Autopilot is a suite of driver-assist systems that provide adaptive cruise control and lane-centering features, among others. Tesla stresses that the system is not meant to be fully autonomous and that a driver must remain constantly engaged with the task of driving.
But safety advocates, including Consumers Union, the advocacy division of Consumer Reports, say the name Autopilot is misleading and that Tesla should change it to something that more accurately reflects the system’s abilities and limitations. The advocates also say Tesla should provide the data to back up the automaker’s claims about how Autopilot improves the safety of vehicles that have it installed.
“Tesla markets itself as an innovator,” says David Friedman, CU’s director of cars and product policy and analysis. “The company should not make either specific or broad safety claims without providing the detailed data to back them up. They should show, not just tell, us how safe their system is.”
The NTSB typically takes a year or more to complete an investigation, looking at everything from a driver’s cell-phone records and prescription drugs to automakers’ engineering decisions and government regulators’ oversight of a particular transportation mode. Once on the scene, the NTSB takes charge of an investigation, and involved parties usually sign an agreement not to release crash details without specific approval from the safety board.
Over the past few weeks, Tesla has published blog postings and made several public statements, releasing details that make it seem like Autopilot was functioning correctly and the driver was to blame.
“Tesla Autopilot does not prevent all accidents—such a standard would be impossible—but it makes them much less likely to occur,” Tesla said on its blog March 30. “It unequivocally makes the world safer for the vehicle occupants, pedestrians and cyclists.”
In response to questions from Consumer Reports, Tesla said it releases information about crashes to correct misinformation, either from the drivers involved or from erroneous media reports.
“We believe in transparency, so an agreement that prevents public release of information for over a year is unacceptable,” Tesla said. “We chose to withdraw from the agreement and issued a statement to correct misleading claims that had been made about Autopilot—claims which made it seem as though Autopilot creates safety problems when the opposite is true.”

 

Buyer beware. Buying a CPO Tesla is a SCAM

Ill try to keep this short and to the point. I'll also keep names out of it as I really do not intend to cause anyone any harm.

First of all, I love Tesla. An amazing company that makes a kick ass car led by a true visionary.
For most of the past 10 years I've been driving different BMW's as they provide the best driving experience in my opinion -- that was until I drove a model S.

So, I spoke with a sales person at Tesla. We went over options and available CPO's.
Overall a very helpful and accommodating person.
KEY POINT:
me: I never bought a car that I haven't seen in real life, or taken out for a test drive. What guarantee is there that the car is in good shape.
him: All of our CPO cars go through the rigorous Tesla certification process and have passed the Tesla quality standards in terms of esthetics and function.

This was enough of an explanation for me. it made sense. If its good enough for Tesla, its sure as hell good enough for me.

So, I bought a sexy white MS85D with 40K miles. All i saw was a photo of the car in what looked like a Tesla workshop of some sort. I was referred to the nearest service center to my location (4 hours away) who were supposed to handle the delivery

There's a bit of a mini-fiasco story with the delivery but lets skip that to keep this post on point. All I'll say is that after the papers were signed via overnight FedEx back and forth (and people were super nice and friendly too) it felt like they forgot about me and sounded very annoyed every time I called to ask about when the car is getting delivered. Apparently it was being delayed because of the necessary detailing that had to be done.


Delivery:
delivery was in the late afternoon on a dark and gloomy day.
Took the car, signed the papers. Truck left.
I immediately call to ask about the cleanliness of the car. I was told that as a CPO it is within the Tesla standards.

Next day, in the sunlight, I had a better look at the car. and that's when I realized just how bad the car's condition is.
Issues:
- Headliner in TERRIBLE condition, Truly disgusting-peeling and hanging down.
- Steering wheel leather has what appears to be permanent damage. Maybe its just
- Blemish / paint chip on the front of the hood
- Leather seats have dark streaks of what looks like oil / grease stains
- Dirt and gravel pretty much everywhere.
- The rear trunk center storage compartment (requires lifting the trunk floor) has dirt and gravel, some weird clothing item, and most revoltingly a dental hygiene tool (an inter-dental floss -- is it used?? I hate to even consider the thought)
- Headliner is peeling and coming off in a couple of areas
- Center console has 2 deep gouges in it.

Other issues:
- BT audio connectivity SUCKS ( i have had to do a soft reset a total of 9 times now in 5 weeks).
- Wheels need alignment. The autopilot blue steering wheel looks funny at an 11 o'clock position when driving in a straight line.

Obviously I called and raised hell with the service dept. Sent them the photos. they apologize and say "let me see what I can do and ill call you back."
No call back, so I call next day. " Whats the update?"
"We are still looking into it, give me until the end of the day."
Car was delivered Monday. By Friday absolutely nothing was done. Each and every day I was told "I'll get right back to you with a way to correct this."
So, I call and tell them that ill take it to a local Auto detail specialist and get it cleaned up. Detail guy says headliner is beyond repair.
I call back and give the service team the update on Saturday. Service guy says "ok, we will have to send a truck to pick it up and bring it here. We will provide a loaner while we work on your car. Let me call you Monday when my manager gets here to get it set up for you."
Monday comes. Nothing. Late afternoon I call the sales guy I bought the car from. "Hello -- Here's he deal, if this car was in a dealership there is no way in hell i would have bought it. I trusted you and the company when you said it is within the Tesla quality standards being a CPO car. whats the return policy on the car? and don't worry, i'll purchase another CPO, I just don't want this one"
"There is no return policy. The car is in good shape. Just cause you don't like it, does not mean you can return it."
"i'll send you the pictures, then lets talk about the Tesla quality standards"

I sent the pics, with a written request to return the car and to have my money back.
this was 4 weeks ago. I have sent him maybe 4-5 other emails and called about 4-5 as well. Have not heard back from Mr. Sales guy.

The service team eventually got back Tuesday. "We are working on the details on the loaner give us a couple of days."
I call Friday "no movement yet. Please be patient"
Another week goes by with absolutely nothing happening. Dodging my phone calls, everyone is in a meeting, and people are getting sick all of a sudden. I called Tesla headquarters in CA. they say all they can do is have the service center in charge of the car handle the problem. But, they will send it over to the escalations department. they recommended I speak with the manager in the service department but refuse to say his name.


On a Monday I get in touch with the manager. Super rude individual.
verbatim : "We are not sending a truck to pick your car up -- it is too expensive."
My reply was : "you know whats too expensive? paying $70K for a car with black and brown grease marks all over, a peeling headliner, and dental hygiene products in the trunk."
He insists that its too expensive to send a truck to pickup the car and provide a loaner. He said the best he can do is fix it in a Tesla approved body shop, and order the parts necessary and have it sent there. And they will arrange for a Luxury rental from Enterprise.
I explain to him that if the repairs take a month, and I have already been dealing with a month, then I will have paid for a car that I am completely unhappy with for 2 months -- thats not cool. And who wants to pay for a Tesla and then drive a car with an ICE and have to put gas and stuff..??
All he could do is send the mobile unit to fix the issues, scheduled on Friday, which will be 25 days from delivery.

Mobile unit gets here, the poor guy is shocked. He takes photos, all the while shaking his head. Says there is no way this can be done in the field. Recommends the car be sent back. this was 10 days ago.

Despite the recommendation from the mobile unit, it took the service team a whole week to give me straight answer about sending a loaner and picking my car up.
this is supposed to happen by Saturday. It will be almost 6 weeks from delivery.


I don't know what to think about the whole thing. But I will definitely never buy CPO from Tesla again, and quite frankly I am questioning whether I should ever buy another Tesla at all.
For $70K I would have bought a very nice beamer, and would have received excellent customer service from a very reputable auto maker.
I paid $70K for a car that, and lets all be honest with each other here, is severely lacking on the inside. But, we are all ok with it because it drives amazing, and we all buy into the company and its mission as a whole. For me though, this touchy feely crap only goes a certain distance. Once I started getting treated like dirt, and spent my commutes alongside a lot of dirt, reality set in that I've been conned.

I would still love to be able to get my money back and give this dirt pile back.

 

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  https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/threads/buyer-beware-buying-a-cpo-tesla-feels-like-a-scam.112768/

Tesla Stops Cooperating With NTSB Probe Into Fatal Crash

Big Surprise...not

Tesla has repeatedly infuriated investigators at the National Transportation Safety Board by announcing its Autopilot software was not to blame for a deadly and gruesome crash in Mountain View last month - despite the official probe not being over yet - and the government agency has finally had enough... as has Tesla: on Thursday, Tesla said it would withdraw from the NTSB's investigation and cease cooperating with investigators.

The news immediately hit Tesla shares.

Bloomberg described this as "an unusual move" because, typically, when your company has nothing to hide, there's little reason to, well, cease cooperating with investigators: we can only imagine Elon Musk would have fired Mueller long ago if he were president. Still, though it won't have a formal role in the probe, Tesla will still provide "assistance" to the NTSB.
In justifying its decision, Tesla made an unusual argument: That it would withdraw from the probe in the interest of transparency because the NTSB has repeatedly stopped it from releasing information about autopilot, something that Tesla says violates its "commitment" to transparency.

"Tesla withdrew from the party agreement with the NTSB because it requires that we not release information about Autopilot to the public, a requirement which we believe fundamentally affects public safety negatively," the company said in an emailed statement. "We believe in transparency, so an agreement that prevents public release of information for over a year is unacceptable."

For what it's worth, the NTSB says it kicked Tesla off the probe for hiding evidence and lying to investigators - an action that wouldn't be altogether unprecedented.

Tesla kills, has range of 80 miles if you use AC or Heater

Tesla angered the NTSB earlier this week when it released a statement saying the "only" explanation for the crash was that Walter Huang, the 38-year-old who died during the accident, was not paying attention. Before that, Tesla said in a blog post that the driver's hands weren't on the steering wheel for six seconds leading up to the crash.

As Bloomberg points out, because it's a relatively small agency, the NTSB relies on the cooperation of companies like Tesla to assist in its probes.

While the NTSB has no regulatory powers, it makes safety-related recommendations to both the government and transportation companies. Meanwhile, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does have the power to order recalls and fine manufacturers; it also investigated the 2016 Tesla crash and closed its probe in January 2017, saying it didn’t find a defect.

With Musk trying to pivot focus back to the company's long climb out of "production hell" - and his recent announcement that production of the next Tesla Model would begin late next year - will markets once again go along with it?

Judging by today's action in Tesla shares, it doesn't look like it.

https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-04-12/tesla-ceases-cooperating-ntsb-probe-fatal-crash

Mercedes Benz Canada Service Fraud - Mississauga S63 AMG Service Appoi...

The “Other” Side of Asymmetry You Never Hear About

Everyone’s heard of “The Big Short”. We’ve Hollywood to thank for that, and thank them I will. After all, who didn’t love Margot Robbie explaining how it all worked? Even Mrs. Chris liked her.

Of course, our heroes correctly bet against these mortgage backed securities smoking piles of isht and now they all drive Porsches and eat lobsters in their bathrobes.
Likewise, everyone’s heard of Jesse Livermore’s famous shorting of the 1907 and 1929 markets where he made a fortune — over a billion green ones in todays money, actually.
Then there’s the legendary stories such as Paul Tudor Jones shorting into what was to become known as Black Monday in 1987, tripling his money.
Now, if you were to ask what defined these trades and made them different from any other, more often than not you’d be told that a lot of money was made in a very short period of time, which in itself is unusual.
True, but that doesn’t tell the whole story.
Dig further and ask what made it so, and you’d likely hear that the upside in the trades was high as opposed to say buying the Dow, taking a strong sedative, and waking up in 20 years.
All of these things are correct, but if you ask me this misses what is probably THE most important point that actually acts as a potential (note: I said potential, nothing is guaranteed) “tell” in any market. Bugger all downside risk. And this happens for very obvious reasons.
It actually comes back to what makes any market become over or undervalued in the extreme. In psychology it’s known as the Dunning-Kruger effect or the cognitive bias in which individuals with low ability perceive themselves as having high ability. It is, in essence, overconfidence.
It was overconfidence that led Joe Sixpack to continue to buy real estate at prices which had become completely disconnected with the incomes that must support those prices, leading to the GFC.
It was overconfidence that led the pointy-shoed suits on Wall Street to package subprime mortgages up, believing that a pile of isht when added to other piles of isht through the magic of diversification turns isht into non isht. Many actually believed that. Overconfidence.
In a past life, I saw this at the big banks who construct ridiculously complex models to assess risk. I spoke about this in “VAR shocks” where I marvelled at how they keep getting it wrong. A fair amount of blame must rest on the shoulders of overconfidence.
In fact, the most epic financial screw-ups in history have all been accompanied by overconfidence.
History's biggest financial screw-ups have all been accompanied by overconfidence.Click To TweetRemember LTCM?
Granted, I’ve never received a Nobel prize but if I ever did, I’d probably feel overconfident, strut my stuff, and do something monumentally stupid.
Like becoming so confident bond spreads couldn’t widen beyond a certain point for a certain period of time that I’d throw all sensible position sizing out of the window and go all in. I’d probably do that just before a major crisis like the rubble collapse. It’s why, if I ever make it onto the cover of Forbes or Time magazine, you should probably immediately unsubscribe or at least do the opposite of whatever it is I’m doing.
Over the weekend, I was thinking about where investors are confident today or indeed where they’ve completely lost confidence. So I set my skinny fingers to work and looked back at what’s transpired in the last couple of decades to see if I could find a market where investors got completely hosed for getting it wrong.
And you know what smacked me like a pan on the face?
The standout winner: Shorting the JGB market.
It’s not called the widow maker for nothing. This is one trade that has been just ideal for folks who like to be tied up and beaten for thrills.

Understandably there’s not many of these guys left. If you want to hear a deafening silence, try this. Yell into a room full of hedgies, “who’s short JGBs?”
Here’s the 10-year Japan government bond yield curve:

We all know the math here. Heck every macro hedgie worth his salt has looked at and had a crack at this bad boy, including yours truly. Ouch!
Maybe the BOJ keeps buying the bond market until they own the whole damn thing. Maybe nobody cares. Maybe the yen doesn’t even move after the bond market is completely owned by the BOJ. Maybe deflation is like stupidity: Here forever, no matter what.
Then again, maybe Harvey Weinstein’s a loving husband and a nice guy.
What is unique about Japan is that the BOJ is targeting yield and holding the 10-year at zero. Not sub zero – just zero. This is important because as we now know yields can go negative, meaning shorting a bond that’s trading at say 100 no longer means it can’t trade at 109.
To illustrate my point just take a look at bunds.
At present, they’re are as crazy as Heinz after you’ve nicked his beer and taken off with his daughter. We can see that the yield is negative all the way out to the 8-year.

And this is what makes JGBs kinda unique.
Theoretically, the floor is zero. Granted, this could change, but let’s go with it for the minute. If your central bank tells you explicitly where the bond is going to trade at, then what the hell’s the point in trading it?
To answer this, let me return to the beginning of this missive. What is it that most people miss when talking about massive payoff trades?
The answer is very, very low risk should the trade not pan out.
Sure, we all want big payoff trades, but the other side of asymmetry is our cost of entry and our risk if we screw it up. Well, let’s return now to our sake drinking friends.
Due in no small part to the BOJ holding the 10-year yield at zero, volatility has lost all the bones in its body and collapsed. Nobody’s playing anymore. Take a look: Implied volatility of 1.2%. That’s basically free.

Which presents an interesting situation. The cost to short JGBs now is about as close to zero as we’ve ever gotten.
What I ask myself is this: Have the laws of economics been suspended indefinitely?
Because if we do the simple math (as so many fund managers have done for the last 20 years), we still realise that even more than ever with a debt to GDP of over 250% it’s become so very important to ensure that nothing, and I mean nothing, moves rates on the BOJ.
Because if it did. Well…

Right now, everyone has given up on this trade, except the two guys with balls in their mouth. The world is fragmenting politically, and the BOJ has pegged the bond market. And if there’s one thing history teaches us, it is that all pegs break at some point.
Right now, there are multiple indicators showing both stress in bond markets and rising inflation.
What happens if the tiniest bit of inflation creeps in and the BOJ attempts foolishly to keep the peg?
Well, it’ll mean a godawful amount of yen printing to keep the short end of the curve under control. But the printing of yen can quickly lead to an inflationary feedback loop, especially given that all maturities would come under pressure and this would mean the BOJ would be firefighting across maturities. More printing of yen, more feedback loop. Kaboom!
Hmmm….
Something to think about. And it’s close to free.
– Chris
“All through time, people have basically acted and reacted the same way in the market as a result of: greed, fear, ignorance, and hope. That is why the numerical formations and patterns recur on a constant basis.” — Jesse Livermore

 https://capitalistexploits.at/2017/11/side-asymmetry-never-hear/

How an extra GPS tracker on a drug dealer's car unraveled a corrupt Baltimore police force that robbed homeless people and resold confiscated heroin and ecstasy back on the street

• Seven of the eight men in the Gun Trace Task Force were arrested March 2017
• Wayne Earl Jenkins, Momodu Gondo, Evodio Hendrix, Maurice Ward, Jemell Rayam, Daniel Hersl, and Marcus Taylor were all convicted 
• Investigation found the men had stolen more than $100,000 from victims 
• And two of the men even worked to try and have a rival killed for a drug dealer  

By Dailymail.com Reporter

Published: 00:27 EDT, 4 April 2018 | Updated: 09:53 EDT, 4 April 2018 

It was a case that would rock Baltimore to its core. An elite police squad robbing its own citizens, stealing thousands of dollars and re-selling confiscated drugs.  

There were homeless men and construction workers who were robbed, prisoners who claimed they were framed, and a shed where ecstasy and heroin were stored.

What sounds like a plot out of a Hollywood film became reality in March 2017 when seven of the eight men who made up the Gun Trace Task force were arrested.

They became one of America's most corrupt police force, and their entire world came crashing down due to one rogue GPS tracker, according to the BBC. 

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An extra GPS tracker was the first clue that helped bring down the Baltimore Police Gun Task Force (Pictured l-r Evodio Hendrix, Marcus Taylor, Wayne Jenkins, Jemell Rayam, Maurice Ward)

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Jenkins (left) led the task force and re-sold everything from heroin to ecstasy. Det. Evodio Hendrix (right) was also convicted 

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 The men had worked on the taskforce in 2015 and 2016, although some of the alleged crimes were said to be committed prior to their joining the team (pictured left is Maurice Ward, right is Daniel Hersl) 

Wayne Earl Jenkins, Momodu Gondo, Evodio Hendrix, Maurice Ward, Jemell Rayam, Daniel Hersl, and Marcus Taylor were arrested in March 2017.

All seven cops were on the Baltimore Police Department's Gun Trace Task Force, a plainclothes unit focused on handgun violations and tracing illegal firearms.

Led by Jenkins, the group worked on the taskforce in 2015 and 2016.

Only one member of the entire squad, John Clewell, was not arrested. And yet it was Clewell's name who helped bring down the entire operation. 

The house of cards began to tumble back in October 19, 2015, during an investigation into suspected heroin dealer Aaron Anderson. 

Anderson and rival dealer Antonio Shropshire, both based in Baltimore, were supplying the bulk of heroin to rural Harford County. 

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Momodu Gondo (left) and Jemell Rayam (right) planted the tracker that would bring down the police force. Both were involved in robbing an drug dealer's home in 2015

Harford County Sheriff's Department Det David McDougall had been trailing Anderson for weeks, watching 'surprisingly open drug sales at a strip mall'. 

McDougall had placed a GPS tracker underneath Anderson's car, and was shocked one night when the dealer went to The Red Roof motel instead of his home. 

Warrants were changed and, after a few days of delay, McDougall nabbed his dealer. 

When he asked Anderson why he had been staying at the motel, Anderson revealed two men had kicked down his door days earlier. 

While most of the men pleaded guilty, Marcus Taylor (pictured) was found guilty by a jury

A man with a hoodie had threatened to kill Anderson's girlfriend, and nabbed jewelry, $10,000 in cash, a Rolex watch, a gun, and 800 grams of heroin. 

When McDougall's team raided Anderson's apartment, they found no drugs, just digital scales and 10 mobile phones. 

There was a boot print on the door and a lock had been shattered. 

Anderson's descriptions of the robbery had awakened suspicions in McDougall. It sounded eerily similar to a police raid. 

When McDougall looked underneath the dealer's car, he was shocked to find a GPS tracker eight inches from his own. 

McDougall had already taken pains to ensure no other law enforcement agency was investigating Anderson, entering all the information in their 'deconfliction database'.  

So McDougall subpoenaed the GPS manufacturer and discovered the owner's name was John Clewell, a detective with the BPD'S Gun Trace Task Force. 

It was later discovered the Task Force had been tracking Anderson because Gondo's childhood friend, who worked for the rival Shropshire, said they wanted to rob and murder him. 

So Gondo and Rayam borrowed a tracker from Clewell. Gondo kept watch and Rayam and the friend, Glen Kyle Wells, robbed Anderson's home. 

McDougall called the FBI, and the investigation began. 

hat the FBI found was far more than anyone could have imagined in 2015. 

It was revealed that Jenkins would steal heroin, ecstasy, crack, and cocaine and re-sell it on the street. 

He would deliver drugs almost nightly to longtime friend Donald Stepp, a bail bondsman who kept an unlocked shed in his backyard for the deliveries. 

THE TASK FORCE

All seven police officers convicted of the crimes worked on BPD's Gun Trace Taskforce, which focused on handgun violations and tracing illegal firearms.

Sergeant Wayne Earl Jenkins, 37, of Middle River. Was the leader of the taskforce.

Detective Momodu Bondeva Kenton Gondo, 35, of Owings Mills. Nicknamed  'GMoney' and 'Mike'. Also charged with dealing heroin alongside five civilians in a separate case.

Detective Evodio Calles Hendrix, 33, of Randallstown.

Detective Daniel Thomas Hersl, 48, of Joppa.

Detective Jemell Lamar Rayam, 37, of Owings Mills.

Detective Marcus Roosevelt Taylor, 31, of Glen Burnie.

Detective Maurice Kilpatrick Ward, 37, of Middle River.

Then there were the robberies, including $100,000 from a safe that was then covered up with a reenactment film. 

Jenkins had his crew take half of the $200,000 they discovered in Oreese Stevenson's basement, along with two kilos of cocaine. 

There was $2,000 taken from a homeless man, the crew stealing his money instead of arresting him for drug sales, and another $16,000 from a man named Shawn Whiting.

And after a high-speed car chase that ended in a crash, the force found $8,000 in a glove box and only returned $2,800 as evidence. 

Jenkins' crew revealed how he planted drugs on innocent people, posed as the US attorney to aid robberies, and would stop any man over the age of 18 for wearing a backpack. 

He was also a fan of 'door pops', speeding towards groups of black men and chasing after anyone who ran. Many of them would also get arrested and robbed. 

The crew revealed that as soon as they found a gun, they could go home - leading to hours of received overtime while they hung out at bars. 

'They owned the city,' one witness told the BBC. 'It was a front for a criminal enterprise.'   

Rayam, Gondo, Jenkins, Hendrix, and Ward all pleaded guilty. Hersl and Taylor were convicted after trial.  

Hendrix, Ward, Allers and Rayam are facing 20 years in prison. Gondo, Hersl and Taylor could get up to 60 years.

Jenkins is expected to receive between 20 and 30 years in federal prison.

 

 

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Mark Zuckerberg, Robert Mercer and other assorted scumbags

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The whistle blower who is revealing how Facebook data is used to corrupt and loot Third World companies.

YouTube is cancelling subscriptions

Our Spiritual World: Fort Antonia, not the Temple location...

Our Spiritual World: Fort Antonia, not the Temple location...: It fits. A massive graveyard of death, souring the ground of Yeshua's return, filled with Babylonian Nephilim descendants who are Ta...

Huge daily swarm of illegals that pour into our southern borders, including jihadis who hide among them...

Free Medical, unless you are a US citizen and white. Free housing, unless you are a US citizen and white. Average day labor pay of 250, not 10. Free education, unless you are a US citizen and white. Every city, county and state employee we see is Hispanic. ALL OF THEM. And if you see someone who is white, it's a woman with a clipboard. And it's not because whites don't want labor jobs - they do - because its a living wage. It's just that NO ONE WILL HIRE WHITES, BECAUSE OF ORDERS FROM THE SATANIC NETWORK.

And right into Texas and New Mexico. there are other massive corridors that stretch for miles that split off into Arizona and California. EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.

YouTube Shooting Suspect Angry Over Demonetization

YouTube Shooter Identified As Nasim Aghdam, was demonetized by jootube for being truth teller

This video proves w/o a doubt that Nasim went on her shooting rampage over YouTube censorship. But the mainstream news outlets claimed it was because she had a beef w/a boyfriend. When will the media stop lying to the public????

As it turns out, Tuesday's shooting at YouTube headquarters (which has so far resulted in zero deaths other than that of the shooter, who committed suicide) had nothing to do with domestic violence and everything to do with blowback to YouTube's demonetization efforts - as many initially feared.
The shooter was identified as Nasim Aghdam who slammed YouTube for purportedly censoring her after she claimed that they demonetized her channels, including an exercise one devoted to exercise videos and another devoted to veganism. Aghdam channeled her anger toward YouTube into a paranoid manifesto published online. She wrote in her purported manifesto: "Be aware! Dictatorship exists in all countries but with different tactics! They only care for personal and short-term profits and do anything to reach their goals even by fooling simple-minded people, hiding the truth, manipulating science and everything, putting public mental and physical health at risk, abusing non-human animals, polluting the environment, destroying family values, promoting materialism and sexual degeneration in the name of freedom and turning people into programmed robots!"

"Manifesto" posted by animal rights activist and YouTube shooter Nasim Aghdam pic.twitter.com/RkkgOz6juF

— Jack Posobiec (@JackPosobiec) April 4, 2018

She identified herself as an Iranian activist as well as an animal rights activist. Shortly after she was identified, photos of her holding signs with anti-YouTube messages were found online and shared.

YouTube HQ shooter held a sign up decrying "YouTube Dictatorship" in 2017 pic.twitter.com/6ZOCwNDQhc

— Jack Posobiec (@JackPosobiec) April 4, 2018

Along with her now-deleted Instagram...

Instagram pages of YouTubeHQ shooter pic.twitter.com/mKiY1UNivZ

— Jack Posobiec (@JackPosobiec) April 4, 2018

...One now-deleted YouTube page bore anti-YouTube messages.

User page of YouTube shooter Nasim Aghdam - just deleted pic.twitter.com/HrCIyImqb5

— Jack Posobiec (@JackPosobiec) April 4, 2018

She recently published a video ranting about her treatment by YouTube, complaining that they'd deprived her of views. She said the practice was tantamount to censorship. She also maintained a website that remained live late Tuesday evening. It lists five channels for Aghdam.

A Facebook artist page she created had more than 1,600 followers according to a cached version from archive.org. The Facebook page contains a trove of videos. They range in subject matter from lighthearted and comical to recipes for helping people eat vegan, as well as her exercise videos.
Contrary to initial reports, ABC said Aghdam wasn't in a relationship with anyone at the facility (so much for those initial suspicions).
She did not have an ID badge, and was carrying a purse. Aghdam was apparently a prolific maker of YouTube videos, maintaining several accounts for videos of different subjects.

The Universal Bro Code: Faceborg spys on your 24/7, ZUck is pals with know...

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Tesla Model 3 Costs More To Charge Than A Gasoline Car

Anton Wahlman

Investors who take it for granted that electric cars are cheaper to run, need to think again.

A comparison between Tesla Model 3 and the three leading hybrid cars of calendar year 2018 from Toyota, Honda and Hyundai proves otherwise.

At the current typical Supercharger price of $0.24 per kWh, a Tesla Model 3 is $0.06 per mile. At the current gasoline price of $2.65, the 50+ MPG hybrids are $0.05 per mile.
Then you have to add that the Model 3 has at best half the range and takes at least 10-20x as long to recharge that inferior range.

Of course, the Model 3 also costs twice as much, and you have to assign an approximate $1,000 per year to battery depreciation, alone more than driving on gasoline for a year.

Most people know the cost of driving a car that runs on regular gasoline. You take the price of the fuel per gallon, and divide it by the Miles Per Gallon (MPG) number that your car yields. The resulting number is the “cost per mile” in variable fuel cost terms.

So far, in the switch to electric cars, the cost of electricity per mile driven, has not been the subject of much discussion. It’s just somehow assumed that an electric car costs less to drive than a gasoline car. There are at least two reasons for this:

• Many early adopters don’t care about the cost of the fuel (electricity) because all they want is to try the new technology. Trying new technology is, after all, cool in and of itself - especially tech for sports cars.
• Many early adopters pay literally nothing for the electricity. Why? Because they charge their cars almost exclusively at one location: Their office, during the day, where the electricity is provided free-of-charge. You just can’t beat 100% free.

However, most of the world does not look like the parking lot at Alphabet’s (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) headquarters, or many other larger companies in Silicon Valley. Most people in the world don’t live in houses with safe garage space, and most people don’t work at large Silicon Valley companies, where EVs make up a disproportionate share of the employee car park.

Dead

Spontaneous combustion, driver and family killed

Dead, after blowing up then crashing