Nevertheless, I needed to invest in a PC as a low-cost way to set up some software to run around the clock. I didn’t want to pay the premium to buy a Mac and install Bootcamp on it just to be able to run Windows.

I got an HP laptop, but the first thing I missed was the two-finger scroll of the Mac trackpad. After Googling it, I soon found out that there is a lightweight two-finger scroll available for PCs.

Note that once you install it, you’ll want to right-click on the icon in the system tray and set it to load automatically at startup.

Enjoy!

Here’s a shot of what we Idahoans affectionately refer to as the Rockies from our new house. What a long process it has been to buy this place–but I hear it’s nothing compared to most short sales, so we feel very blessed to have sold our Nampa house in such a short time and gotten into this one so quickly. The kids now have some room to spread out, play volleyball, etc., and we actually have room to foster more kids now (which we’re doing currently for a beautiful little 7 week old baby girl).

The reasoning: If buyer and seller both know stimulus is coming their way, then everyone knows that everyone else has the same bag of money. Prices will therefore go up. Duh. But here’s their astounding conclusion: We can’t handle the truth, and maybe…just maybe…we shouldn’t be told when the Fed is doing its “stimulus.”

This is an amazing statement on the core philosophy of many people who have drunk the progressive Kool-Aid. I have an idea…let’s all willingly stay in the dark so the Fed can manipulate us more easily to buy, sell, invest, or save in the “proper” amounts at any given time. After all, we all know how well the government does its job.

Also of interest is Ben Bernanke on 60 Minutes defending his stimulus efforts. You can hear the worry in his voice:

And for some rather apocalyptic commentary from an economist I actually trust, check out what John Williams of ShadowStats.com has to say about the potential that Quantitative Easing will lead to hyperinflation.

Then check out this hypothetical scenario of what the U.S. dollar crash could look like. It’s called The Day the Dollar Died:

Fabian Socialism – Part 1 of 3

Fabian Socialism – Part 2 of 3

Fabian Socialism – Part 3 of 3

Take, for example, the idea of Anthropogenic Global Warming (AGM). Just a decade or two ago, the idea was in its ascendency, building popularity like wildfire. I remember all of the “green” hype as an architecture student in the late 80s. I didn’t buy it then (thankfully), but it’s been shown now to be largely hype. Even the U.K. is now outlawing certain ads because they are too exaggerated. AGM is on a decline. The bubble – the fad – has burst.

I believe China’s media-enshrined status as an all-powerful counterpoint to American capitalism is a bubble that will at some point burst as well. Yes, China has had a great run when it comes to economic growth and ascendency to power on the world stage. But whether in stocks or political fortunes, all trends at some point reverse and come down off their highs.

I remember when everyone feared the ascendency of the Japanese. Their economy was on fire and they seemed unbeatable. Their cars were better, their companies better run without the overhead of fat-cat union contracts. Everyone feared that Japan would own every piece of American real estate.

It didn’t happen. Bubbles burst, the Japanese got ahead of themselves, and misjudged the market. They agreed to build plants here and unionize, losing much of their competitive edge. Real estate prices took a hit back in the 80s and again in 2005, resetting market forces and neutralizing a lot of Japanese “malinvestment.”

The same is bound to happen with China. The invisible hand of economics is a much more powerful force than government planners, and no matter how smart those planners are in their centrally planned economy, they cannot outsmart the market. They will make bad investments and become inefficient, as all big government will eventually do. China is not a juggernaut.

American doesn’t need to fear the Chinese simply because they own a lot of American debt, although we should be ashamed of ourselves for letting our politicians get away with the ferocious spending they’ve practiced for decades. However, we do need to fear them if we don’t get our act together and become competitive again as a nation.

If we can scale back the forces in American that are trying to build a big, inefficient European style government, we have a chance  to regain our economic footing in the world economy and compete with China. If we continue down a path of centralized government control of our economy, we’ll end up in the malaise that Japan and Europe have been in for quite some time.

I just launched a beta version of a site to  that end for home buyers in the Portland market to search for Portland homes for sale. While I’m testing and experimenting, the listing links all go to the site of a client of mine who sells…coincidentally enough…Portland homes. So if you want to buy a home in the Portland area, check out http://portlandhomes.mobi on your mobile phone. You can tell David that Kevin sent you:  503-789-7633.

Interested in a mobile real estate site? Give me a call: 208-249-8893.