Saudi FM Saud al-Faisal warns US dollar could collapse if OPEC considers Alternative Currency

The warning was overheard at an oil producing countries’ session Riyadh over an open microphone in a private meeting in reply to a proposal from Venezuela and Iran to discuss a currency basket for pricing crude. Prince Saud said: “My feeling is that the mere mention that the OPEC countries are studying the issue of the dollar is itself going to have an impact that endangers the interests of the countries.” The microphone was then cut off.

Don't you all love people who don't care about us, give us "warnings?"

Or, since almost 50 million United States citizens have no health insurance, that has become a major issue in this upcoming Presidential election.

Oh, did you hear the one about Russell R. Wasendorf, Sr., CEO and Chairman, of Peregrine Financial Group, telling us that the merger of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and the Chicago Board of Trade, won't "substantially" lessen competition between U.S. exchanges?

Gee, in business school, the concept of few companies in an industry are either a monopoly or an oligopoly.

Meaning one player, or just a few, gets to price gouge us, and have a lock on the market.

Well,  anti-trust and anti-competitive laws need to be strengthened not weakened. Or haven't the "poo poo" boys in Chicago been reading the latest financial news?

The price of oil is skyrocketing--more money for exchanges, speculators, future commission merchants, and OPEC, and less money for people who have to have to drive to work to survive. 

And he bemoans the big bullies in New York:

To wit:

"Now, in its probe of the CME Group merger, Justice seems to be reacting to the FIA's lobbying, as the FIA decries that by concentrating significant power in Chicago the combination of the world's two largest and most successful futures exchanges might reduce competition or raise the barrier to entry for new competitors.

The FIA does not represent the best interests of the futures industry with this stand nor in general. The association purports to be an advocate for all futures firms, but its board is dominated by the big New York investment banks and the global wire houses. The organization had its roots in New York, where it was founded in 1955, and it has always given short shrift to Chicago, the home of the U.S. futures industry. It has been unwilling to include retail brokerage firms and CTAs in its strategic planning and in setting its agenda.

A powerful merged exchange in Chicago will be an enormous threat to the FIA's supremacy as a lobbying power in Washington and as a player in the industry. The New York investment banks have held sway over government for many years, and the Chicago exchanges have had to fight tooth and nail to keep these banks from stepping on their toes.

The CME-CBOT merger presents enormous benefits for futures customers and in turn the firms with whom they trade. Customers will have access to a wide range of products on one trading platform. This is increasingly necessary as more and more individual traders branch out in adding more products to their portfolios. Even FIA acknowledges the merger could bring cost savings and operational efficiencies to firms and their customers."

Well, most of us, by now. know that the words, "operational efficiencies," "global competition," and "best intestests" by those that are seeking something from us--MONEY--really don't have much of our compassion nor trust.