The Rude Awakening
Wall Street, New York
Tuesday, August 1, 2006 ------------------------- - Evolving technology – marching us towards gold and
saving us from horse manure,
- Hunting profits around the globe, opportunities where
you least expect to find them,
- Bill signs off, a mix of red and green to start off
the week's markets and plenty more...
------------------------- [Joel's Note: There are few ways to will bring your
vacation mindset back to reality better than opening your
email after a week away from the desk. Sifting through the
mountain of mail after returning from Vancouver, I came
across one I had to share with you. It's the final wrap
from the Wealth Symposium from Rick Barnard...complete with
a picture of your roving reporter team. If you missed the conference, or any of the earlier
reports, check out the first few days here then read on as
Rick reports on the musings of Bill Bonner and a gaggle of
Agora Financial's finest editors: Day One – Greg Grillot of Whiskey & Gunpowder reports: Day Two – Kate "Short Fuse" Incontrera of the Daily
Reckoning reports: Day Three – Joel Bowman of, well, The Rude Awakening
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ready-to-explode stocks right here: http://www.isecureonline.com/Reports/SCI/ESCIG705 ---------------------------- This is the End
by Rick Barnard Today, the last day of the Agora Financial Wealth
Symposium, Bill Bonner took the stage to discuss "the end"
- the end of the dollar, the end of the housing bubble, the
end of the U.S. Empire, the end of Western civilization...
and the end of all life on Earth. I'll simply discuss the end of the conference. It's a bit of a cliché, but we saved the best for last -
with some of the strongest, most informative and possibly
most profitable information yet. And I'm not just saying
that because I work with these most of these guys. First up was Michael Checkan of Asset Strategies
International. He was stopping in Vancouver as part of a
whirlwind trip around the world, visiting gold hotspots
around the globe. By the time he reached us in Canada, his
passport was filled with fresh ink from the likes of
Turkey, Australia, Singapore and more. Michael shared some of his favorite ways to invest in gold
around the world, focusing on coins and bullion. But he
also acknowledged that there's always room for gold ETFs
and gold certificates, too. As he admitted, "I'm a gold
bug, but that doesn't mean I'm a paper worm." Then it was time for James Boric to take the stage. We've
seen very little of our favorite small-cap analyst the past
few days as he perfected his speech and double-checked his
recommendations. But it was obviously time very well spent,
as the crowd was treated to an in-depth look at why small-
caps still have power... and a step-by-step method for
evaluating the best ones out there. Despite what some of his esteemed colleagues had said
during the week, James made a compelling argument for
following Wall Street's smallest stocks - offering three
specific ways you can still find value in this overheating
sector. He also shared two of the best values he's come
across - a pair of tiny companies with great fundamentals
and a building catalyst for breakout growth. If James is
right, both are poised to double or more. Of course, time
is of the essence on these plays, and I hear several
conference-goers jumped onto their laptops moments after
his speech. One of the most intriguing speeches of the day came
courtesy of Outstanding Investment's Justice Litle. He
shared his belief that gold bugs fondest wish could soon
come true - and much of the world could soon return to the
gold standard. To many on Wall Street, it's just a pipe dream. And Justice
was well aware of the criticism. In fact, he discussed the
four biggest objections to returning to a gold standard -
and offered a compelling case for dismissing every single
one. From the murmurs in the crowd, I could tell some
people weren't buying it. But then Justice offered a simple
analogy...comparing today's currency fears to a common fear
over 200 years ago - the fear that America's cities would
be buried knee-deep in horse manure. See, back then, America was growing so fast that and more
and more horses were needed to keep things running smoothly
- deliver people and goods throughout our burgeoning
cities. Some scientists and worrywarts predicted the number
of horses in our cities would have to outpace the human
population to keep up with demand. And that meant a lot of
horse waste filling the streets. Luckily, our government
wasn't so proactive in those days, so there weren't
proposals for programs or policies to stop the threat of
"road apples." Instead, technology came to the rescue,
ensuring that future generations wouldn't have to watch
where they stepped walking down the street. And Justice
believes technology will step in to rescue our currencies,
too, putting us back on the gold standard, where we belong. Bringing another unique look at history was the ever-
popular Byron King. Our favorite historian dedicated his
talk to turning points in history - events that in
hindsight changed the world forever. From Japan's defeat at
the Battle of Midway to how a war with the Bulgarians
brought an end to the Byzantine Empire, Byron showed how
seemingly minor events can have big consequences - and
shared ideas for identifying these turning points while
there is still time to take advantage of them. One of those future turning points is sure to be the
growing water crisis, as Chris shared when he took the
stage. He shared the latest data on America's crumbling
water infrastructure, and the costs it will involve to fix.
Little did he know that a mere four days before he spoke, a
maintenance crew had hammered through the ceiling just
above our heads. It turns out some pipes had started
leaking, leaving several hotel rooms without water. So, I
hope the crowd was paying particular attention to the
specific stocks he recommended. Next, it was time for a profit scavenger hunt - literally.
Global Profit Hunter's Sala Kannan hid several items around
the conference room. Each represented a specific
opportunity for profits in the years ahead. As attendees
eagerly looked under their tables and chairs for the
special goodies, Sala revealed how they were the best ways
to invest in the world's growing middle class. Among the
items - and her specific recommendations - was a can of
beer. After congratulating the luck attendee who found it,
she suggested he save it because, as she put it, "You'll
need it because Bill Bonner is up next." Sure enough, our top curmudgeon took the stage in rare form
– tackling head-on the belief that he's always negative. He
just calls things how he sees them...and it's a fact that
nothing lasts forever. But that doesn't necessarily mean
that the end is near. And it certainly doesn't mean it's
all downhill from here. "There was no signal that the Roman Empire was in decline,"
he said. "And the truth is, Roman citizens enjoyed some of
their best years, even as the Empire was falling apart." The same thing might be true for America. Yes, we are an
empire. And empires don't last forever. But they still can
last for a long time, and people can prosper in that time.
In his usual humble style, the Daily Reckoning mastermind
conceded: "The U.S. empire could last for another four
centuries." "Then again," he added, "Rome didn't have a Federal Reserve
system..." All in all, it's been an exciting and informative couple of
days. I spoke to several attendees who declared this one of
the best financial conferences they've ever attended. While
some people admitted they didn't like every speaker, they
did enjoy the large number of specific recommendations
they're going home with. Regards, Rick Barnard
for The Daily Reckoning P.S. So it seems all the hard work - behind the scenes and
in front – was worth it. But you don't have to be left out.
We recorded each and every speech this week and these
special CDs will bring you almost all the action - straight
to your living room. It's the next best thing to being
here... The Agora Financial Wealth Symposium CDs Editor's Note: Rick Barnard is a financial writer based in
Baltimore, Maryland. He's the editor of Agora Financial and
Associate Editor of The Richebächer Letter. He also does
behind-the-scenes editing and writing for newsletters like
Outstanding Investments and the Capital & Crisis.
--- Special ---
During these 3 Shocking Events of 2006...
Join The World's Most Elite Investors This year millions of average American investors will be
wiped out... but not this elite circle of potential
investors. Introducing TWO very simple investments that will
protect you, creating a fortress of "wealth insurance"
around your portfolio... Become part of the world's most intelligent and elite
investment circle today! http://www.isecureonline.com/Reports/RCH/ERCHG431 ---------------------------- [Joel's Note: "Investing in the Age of Empire," was the
theme of the Agora Wealth Symposium this year. From this
theme there emerged a plethora of ideas, opinions and
actionable advice, delivered by both speaker and attendee
alike. If you have any ideas of your own that you would like to
share, you can send them onto your Rude team at:
aussiejoel@the-rude-awakening.com Oh, and best wishes from your roving reporters (pictured
below). Thanks for a great week and we'll see you again
next year. Cheers, jOEL 
[From left to right: Yours truly, Rick "Yard" Barnard,
Whiskey and Gunpowder's Greg Grillot and Kate "the Fuse"
Incontrera from the Daily Reckoning.] ---------------------------- 
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