James Earnest Investments

STOCK MARKET PERFORMANCE

YEAR-TO-DATE THROUGH AUGUST 19, 2011

Dow Jones Industrial Average   -4.95%

S&P 500   -9.53

Nasdaq   -11.72

Russell 2000   -16.23

QUOTE FROM BOB BRINKER'S MARKETIMER

"There is the plain fool who does the wrong thing at all times everywhere, but there is also the Wall Street fool, who thinks he must trade all the time." ...... Jesse Livermore

AMERICANS FLUSH LOTS OF WATER

Back in 1999, a team of researchers recorded 289,000 toilet flushes of Americans in 12 cities from Seattle to Tampa. In fact, the researchers used water flow sensors to record not just toilet flushes, but every "water event" in each of 1,188 homes for four weeks - how many gallons a bath takes, how often the clothes washer runs, how much water the dishwasher uses. The study's conclusion can be summed up in four words: We like to flush. We use more water flushing toilets than bathing, or cooking or washing our dishes or our clothes. The typical American flushes the toilet five times a day at home, and uses 18.5 gallons of water just for that. What that means is that every day, Americans flush 5.7 billion gallons of clean drinking water down the toilet. And that's just at home. This is more water than all the homes in the United Kingdom and Canada use each day for all their needs -- we flush more water down the toilet than 95 million Brits and Canadians use. ...... From The Big Thirst by Charles Fishman and quoted in The Week

HOT HOT HOT

Oklahoma's average temperature in July - 88.9 degrees - is the highest for a state in U.S. history. ..... Time

FOOD STAMPS

The use of food stamps in the United States has skyrocketed since the recession began, with one in seven Americans now participating in the program. The cost to the government has nearly doubled, to $65 billion a year. ..... The Economist

AND, OTHER GOVERNMENT BENEFITS - "WE ARE ALL WELFARE QUEENS"

"Accusations fly about cutting tuition grants, Medicare, veterans' benefits and food stamps. It's a litany that raises a simple question. Who isn't getting a government check? We all know the nation's budget is huge, but nothing drives the point home like the number of Americans receiving financial support. Add Medicaid, farm payments, housing subsidies and others to the list, and roughly 47% of all Americans are receiving at least one federal benefit. Tax preferences, like the deductions for mortgage interest, retirement savings and health care, bring the number closer to 75%. The dirty little secret about America is that being on the dole is no longer the exception but the rule". ..... From John Sununu, quoted in Time

LOTTERIES

Eleven states earned more revenue from lotteries than from corporate income taxes in 2009. Americans spent more than $50 billion on lotteries that year, the latest for which complete data are available. ..... Reuters.com

FREE LEARNING

AcademicEarth.org, a free website, offers more than 1,500 video lectures by professors from Harvard, Yale and other top schools, They are broken down into "single classes on topics as diverse as art, architecture and astronomy." ..... The Week

MENTAL HEALTH AND PROSPERITY

Residents of rich countries are more likely to be depressed than those who live in pooer nations. That's the startling conclusion World Health Organization researchers reached when they interviewed nearly 90,000 people in 18 countries about their mental health. France and the U.S. were the most depressed; 21 percent of French people and more than 19 percent of Americans have suffered from the disorder. By contrast, many low to middle-income countries had strikingly low depression rates. Only 8 percent of Mexicans and 6.5 percent of Chinese people say they've ever been depressed. Just because wealthy nations "have a high income doesn't mean there isn't a lot of stress in the environment," lead researcher Evelyn Bromet tells Health.com. ..... The Week

TRANSPORTATION EXPENSE

The poorest fifth of Americans spend roughly 42 percent of their annual income on transportation. Middle-income Americans, by comparison, spend an average of 22 percent. ..... Wired.com

PREVENTING ALZHEIMER'S

There's no cure in sight for the 5 million Americans suffering from Alzheimer's disease. But a new study has found that it's possible to greatly reduce your chances of developing the disease by lifestyle choices. The study, by the Mayo Clinic, found that seven known risk factors contribute to up to half of Alzheimer's cases worldwide. For Americans, the single biggest risk factor is physical inactivity, which the study linked to 21 percent of U.S. Alzheimer's cases. Depression accounts for 15 percent, and smoking 11 percent. The findings contradict the widespread belief that Alzheimer's is a predetermined genetic fate. Worldwide dementia rates are expected to triple over the next 40 years, as seniors make up an increasingly large proportion of the global population. Researcher Deborah Barnes of the University of California at San Francisco tells the Associated Press that the study provides hope that we can slow "the epidemic that is coming our way." ..... The Week

SUPERSIZE ME AMERICA !

The average British tourist gains 8 pounds during a two-week trip to the U.S., thanks to big portions and all-you-can-eat buffets. ..... London Daily Mail

LAS VEGAS MARRIAGES

Quickie marriages in Las Vegas are declining. In 2010, only 91,890 marriage licenses were issued in Nevada's Clark County, down from 128,250 in 2004, when more baby boomers were tying the knot. ..... Associated Press

FOOD INFLATION

Milk and eggs in June cost at least 10 percent more at the supermarket than in June 2010, says the USDA. Overall, food inflation is expected to continue to rise by 3 to 4 percent next year. ..... MarketWatch.com

MILT'S MORSEL OF THE MONTH (courtesy of Eddie Crowder)