Talk about bad luck!  In announcing his 2008 candidacy, Joe Biden managed to pick the slowest news day of 2007 to say something about Barack Obama that was bound to offend the news media’s scandal-mongering "Gotcha!" squad. Here’s what the senior Senator from Delaware actually said: "I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy. I mean, that's a storybook, man." Now, we all know what Biden meant to say  – that Obama is the first black presidential candidate to come along who combines all of these traits in one uniquely appealing package. (Note to Joe:  In your groveling apologia over the next few days, do not under any circumstances say that Obama has got all of these qualities “in spades”.)

Biden has never been one of my favorites, and his role as an instigator of the electronic lynching of Clarence Thomas still ranks as one of the most egregious spectacles of hypocrisy in the sordid annals of the Senate. But in this instance, you could practically feel sorry for the guy. Who could have predicted that the TV networks would be so starved for legitimate news Wednesday evening that Biden’s “gaffe” would wind up as their lead story?

With all the trumped-up hullaballoo, no one seems to have noticed that even if Obama’s reply did not excuse Biden, neither will it have helped solidify the freshman Senator's position in the firmament of dream candidates. “I didn’t take Senator Biden’s comments personally,” said Obama, “but obviously they were historically inaccurate. African-American presidential candidates like Jesse Jackson, Shirley Chisholm, Carol Moseley Braun and Al Sharpton gave a voice to many important issues through their campaigns, and no one would call them inarticulate.”  Al Sharpton!??  Does anyone recall  this race-baiting weasel’s history, starting with the Tawana Brawley hoax, then the torch mob Sharpton whipped up that resulted in a fatal fire at a Harlem clothing store?

If the likes of Sharpton and Jesse “the opportunist” Jackson are Obama’s idea of worthy spokesmen for the black community, then give me Biden any day as the Democratic candidate in 2008.

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Q&A  at GoldSeek

I’ll be conducting an open Q&A forum at GoldSeek.com today (Thursday) at noon EST, the second such session in a continuing series.  During the first half of the planned hour-long session I will answer questions about stocks, indexes, options and commodities that you have e-mailed me in advance. You can do so Wednesday night by clicking here or by pointing your browser to the following URL: http://www.goldseek.com/chat.php. To actually enter the chat room for the real-time Q&A that will follow, you should pre-register by clicking here or by pointing your browser to this URL: http://www.goldseek.com/chat/.

Readers might also be interested to know that my daily essays on a wide variety of topics will continue to be available at GoldSeek and other sites frequented by traders and investors. With respect to one singularly important topic in particular – deflation – I aim to provide, as always, some of the most provocative and illuminating commentary you will find on the web.

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Seminars in Atlanta and Boca Raton

I’ve received numerous requests to offer Hidden Pivot seminars in Atlanta, Georgia, and Boca Raton, Florida. I will do so if there is sufficient demand, so please let me know if you would be seriously interested in attending in either place.  The two-day class would probably be held sometime in the spring of 2007. Contact me via e-mail, including your contact information and choice of locales. The cost would be $1,500 USD.