Daily Reads

[StockBuz]

• With the increase in US oil (hello Bakken), shipping black gold by rail has caused backlog in shipments of other goods across all industries forcing rail companies to scramble to expand.  The biggest loser: shippers.  Sounds like more promo for Keystone to be approved WSJ
• Are you guilty or have you been there, done that?  Take a different view of those around you in the service industry and how you/we view and interact with them.  An open letter to Paul Ryan on poverty Salon
• Last night after the close, CME lowered margin requirements for Brent and WTI crude oil futures.
• Members here at StockBuz have been playing precious metals and miners; gold, silver, GDXJ (junior miners).  Investing.com has noticed the move off of the lows as well.
• The "death spiral states" talk of Democratic states leading in number of Welfare recipients (shockingly) distorts the full truth.  What else will the Koch brothers come up with next?  Factcheck.org
• China slowing is the biggest threat to growth currently, say 27 out of 49 of economists, as the worlds 2nd largest economy would affect all areas of the globe.  "There are real financial instabilities in China that pose the biggest downside risk to the global outlook," said Julia Coronado of BNP Paribas. [WSJ]   Add to this their already perilous financial system with shadow banking complications and housing bubble values (written about here) and you have a recipe for further stress as Chinese government officials attempt to reign in or tighten their lending.  Remember when GE couldn't get access to credit for their day-to-day operations?  Let's hope we don't see a repeat of the '07 meltdown in China.