SDS Daily Briefing for Tuesday, October 25, 2011

What's Playing In Peoria?  Teen Mob Violence.

I saw this story on Drudge - Peoria, Illinois is located not too far from the HQ of my employer, so I tend to track on things like this.  Teen mob violence continues to rise across the country, and when it starts hitting middle America like Peoria, we need to pay attention.  The home of Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT), Peoria isn't exactly the 'hood. 

As members of the Suburban Dad Survivalist Nation, we simply must pay more attention to what's going on in our communities and be ready to take care of our homes and families in the event of escalating violence.  Make your family members aware of the challenges we're facing, and make sure they stay alert to danger in our neighborhoods.

The SDS - A Source of Uplifting News

I chatted with a couple of guys at work today about the presidential race and our economy as a whole.  As usual, I shared my "why I think we are so screwed" sound bites with them.  As I left the conversation, they thanked me for giving them such an uplifting pep talk.

Meanwhile, I got back to my desk and casually checked on my latest investment as of yesterday: selling First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR) short.  (That means, in essence, I invested in such a way that I only profit if the shares go down in price.)  I felt I'd timed the investment fairly well yesterday afternoon, and so I wanted to see how my theory held.

What I didn't know yesterday afternoon was that today, the CEO of the company abruptly left his job, ostensibly forced out by the board of directors.  Today, First Solar closed down a whopping 25%...meaning I made 25% in just one day.

Now, I don't share this story to brag - for every awesome trade I've done, I can show you ten more which really, really suck.  But my point is this: even in times of crisis, there are things we can do to not only be prepared, but to come out ahead.  One thing I've started doing is shorting stocks, like I did yesterday, following the guidance of Stansberry Research.

Don't get scared, friends.  Get prepared.  And when you do, you'll sleep better at night and find opportunities to come out ahead.