Weekend Open Thread

Happy days are here again....

• Loonie up to 91 cents and change. Will we see parity again soon? Who knows. Ontario and Quebec are going to be in more trouble and manufacturing hit again.
  
• Oil up to $66. Are we going to see $100 oil again? Who knows. In any case, we sure seem to be running out of space for holding the excessive oil produced during the last several months.
  
• Up is down, good is bad, bad is great....fundamentals don't matter. Once again. We do know how this ended the last time, but everyone (Banks, Hedgies et.al) is back in the game with a vengeance, supercharged with the massive guarantees given by the governments of the world and inspired by their dedication to do 'good' to the world.
  
• And it's not misplaced. If they can all succeed in restarting the commodities bubble, so many problems will be solved. Like all those unemployed engineers and tradespeople in Alberta can start working on the oil sands again which will help energy companies produce more and generate more tax for the governments at all levels. Never mind the drag higher oil prices will have on the rest of the world and wilt the 'green shoots.' And we seem to have forgotten how the oil bubble ended the last time. But that was all so last year.
  
• The local real estate seems to be doing just fine again. For all those bullish on real estate, the only thing that matters is- but prices are going up and the sales are strong. This is all bolstered by the arguments specific to a locale- oil, weather, diversified economy etc. We all know how this has ended at other places but given we never completely fell down the cliff and miraculously got a lift on our journey downwards has revived many a faltering spirit. May be we are really different here. As many people would say- this is the last chance to get into the Alberta's faltered real estate market. Sigh.