Where Food Stamps Go To Die

Anyone who has the power to make you believe absurdities has the power to make you commit injustices.

No snowflake in an avalanche ever feels responsible.

Common sense is not so common.

I have never made but one prayer to God, a very short one: “O Lord make my enemies ridiculous.” And God granted it.

In general, the art of government consists of taking as much money as possible from one class of citizens to give to another.

The sovereign is called a tyrant who knows no laws but his caprice.

All murderers are punished unless they kill in large numbers and to the sound of trumpets.

- All Quotes by Voltaire

Where Food Stamps Go to Die

We all know the economy sucks. We all know we are headed in the wrong direction. We all know our leaders are corrupt, immoral, greedy and violent. You don’t need me to tell you that. One thing that I have noticed recently while watching the financial markets is that despite the fact most stocks charts I pull up look awful, the major indices continue to hang in or grind higher. While it is not new news that a few large cap stocks are holding the major averages up, I want to focus on one in particular. Wal-Mart. Yes we all know Wal-Mart. Everyone has an opinion; whether you love it or hate it. In this instance, I’m not so much interested in the company itself, the stores or disturbing images of some of the people seen shopping there. No, in this case I want to take a look at the stock and ponder what it tells us about the state of affairs in both the U.S. and the global economy as a whole.

Wal-Mart’s stock is up 14% YTD, which is triple the return of the S&P 500. The stock also packs a dividend yield of 2.3%, so the total return is even better. In the last month or so the stock has become a real powerhouse as you can see in the chart below. Crushing any and all shorts under the weight of its rapid appreciation.

Wal-Mart Three Year Chart

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